2012-2013 Teaching Issues Writing Consortium

Teaching Tips

Contributions by:

BellarmineUniversity CSU,SanBernadino CapilanoUniversity(Canada) CentralMichiganUniversity ClemsonUniversity CommunityCollegeofRhodeIsland EasternKentuckyUniversity EckerdCollege EdithCowanUniversity(Australia) KaplanUniversity MarymountUniversity NewYorkInstituteofTechnology NorthCarolinaWesleyanCollege NorthCentralCollege(Illinois) RegisUniversity SaintLouisUniversity SaukValleyCommunityCollege SenecaCollege(Canada) ThompsonRiversUniversity(Canada) UniversityofBritishColumbia UniversityofCentralOklahoma UniversityofKentucky UniversidaddelNorte(Colombia) UniversityofNorthCarolinaat Greensboro UniversityofNotreDame UniversityoftheRockies TheUniversityofTennessee,Knoxville UniversityofTexasatSanAntonio UniversityofVermont UniversityofWashingtonBothell UniversityofWestFlorida WesternCarolinaUniversity WesternKentuckyUniversity WilfridLaurierUniversity(Canada) WilmingtonUniversity

Table of Contents
CourseCountdown.......................................................................................................................................1 WhattoDowiththeInternationalStudents?HowtoPrepareBeforeClassStarts.....................................2 FirstDayofClassStudentBuyIn:AdvicefromUnknownMentors.............................................................3 ANewTypeofScavengerHuntasanIceBreaker........................................................................................ 5 UsingtheCourseSyllabusasanOpportunitytoPromoteStudentLearning...............................................6 StrategiesforLearningNamesinLargeClasses............................................................................................ 7 RemembertoConsiderLearningSpace........................................................................................................ 9 TheKeyComponentsofIntegratedCourseDesign.................................................................................... 10 AVisualRepresentationofYourCourse..................................................................................................... 11 WarmUps...................................................................................................................................................12 LowTechClassroomResponseSystems(Clickers)..................................................................................... 13 UsePowerPointtoPromptEngagingLearningActivitiesDuringClass......................................................14 Cases/RolePlaying/JigsawATeachingTechniqueforExploringMultiplePerspectives..........................15 NotJustFunandGames!StructureClassDemonstrationstoReinforceLearningGoals ...........................17 TheCrosswordPuzzleasThresholdtoHigherOrderThinking..................................................................19 ImprovingSmallGroupWorkthroughRoleClarification........................................................................... 20 OnlineCollaboration:TheNewGroupFormat........................................................................................... 21 VoiceThread...............................................................................................................................................23 OnlineWritingInstructionbeyondtheDiscussionBoard ........................................................................... 24 EnhanceStudentCollaborationwithOnlineTools:GoogleApps ...............................................................26 MoreonStudentCollaborationandGoogleApps...................................................................................... 28 ..................................................................... 30 Whichtool?...Blackboard?GoogleApps?Somethingelse? Gamification................................................................................................................................................32 TheClaremontDialog.................................................................................................................................34 PersonalizePlagiarismtoPreventitsPractice............................................................................................ 34 Storytelling,Creativity,andClassroomManagement................................................................................ 37 ShortVideoGuidesforStudentsonEffectiveStudyStrategies.................................................................38 TEDResources.............................................................................................................................................40 StudentEngagementTechnique:SilentDiscussion.................................................................................... 41

GotaMinuteforMyWorldview?............................................................................................................... 42 APrimeronCriticalThinking...................................................................................................................... 44 WiththeCommunity,NotJustInIt............................................................................................................ 46 DevelopingStudentReadingCapacity........................................................................................................ 48 LearningfromConflictintheClassroom.................................................................................................... 49 TeachingEvening(orotherextendedtime)Classes................................................................................... 51 NutritionandLearning................................................................................................................................52 IdentifyingStudentLearningFactors.......................................................................................................... 53 ThePastisAlwaysWithUs......................................................................................................................... 55 KnowledgeSurveys.....................................................................................................................................56 EffectiveFeedback......................................................................................................................................57 HaveStudentsProcessFeedback............................................................................................................... 59 FormativeandSummativeFeedbackandItsImpactonLearnerMotivation............................................60 HolisticConversationsAboutaCourseActivityfortheLastWeekofClass............................................62 AClassroomAssessmentTechnique:KeyPrincipleandRestating............................................................63 AClassroomAssessmentTechnique:CategorizingGrid............................................................................ 64 WritingtheRightBookforRightBrainers.................................................................................................. 65 BookReview:ReadingforUnderstanding:HowReadingApprenticeshipImprovesDisciplinaryLearning inSecondaryandCollegeClassrooms......................................................................................................... 67 WhattoDoAboutBimodalStudentEvaluations? ..................................................................................... 68

CourseCountdown
6weeksbeforeclass: *Draftyourlearningobjectives: http://wiki.ubc.ca/Learning_Objectives#Online_Resources *Checkforcopyrightcompliance:http://copyright.ubc.ca<http://copyright.ubc.ca/> *Learnaboutyourstudents http://www.cmu.edu/teaching/designteach/design/yourstudents.htmlHowstudentslearn: http://www.cmu.edu/teaching/principles/learning.html *Supportundergraduatesuccess: http://wiki.ubc.ca/Documentation:Guide_to_Teaching_for_New_Faculty_at_UBC (SupportingUndergradstudentsuccess) 4weeksbeforeclass: *Preparingsyllabus: http://wiki.ubc.ca/Syllabus_Design_%28Teaching_and_Learning%29 *Confirmassessmentmethods(todo:categorizeeachassessmentresourcewithassessment)thenadd url *GetfamiliarwithUBCsupportedtechnologies: http://www.elearning.ubc.ca/toolkit/ 2weeksbeforeclass: *Lessonplanning: http://www.cmu.edu/teaching/designteach/teach/instructionalstrategies/index .html *WorkingwithTas http://wiki.ubc.ca/Documentation:Guide_to_Teaching_for_New_Faculty_at_UBC *Workingwithfirstyearstudents: http://learningcommons.ubc.ca/facultyresources/ Day1/Week1: *Classclimate: http://www.cmu.edu/teaching/designteach/teach/learningenvironment.html Aboriginalfocus: http://ctlt.ubc.ca/programs/aboriginalinitiativesprograms/ *FirstdayofClass: http://www.cmu.edu/teaching/designteach/teach/firstday.html *LearningToolkits:http://learningcommons.ubc.ca/studenttoolkits/ Submittedby JudyC.K.Chan,PhD EducationalDeveloper CentreforTeaching,LearningandTechnology TheUniversityofBritishColumbia www.ctlt.ubc.ca

WhattoDowiththeInternationalStudents?HowtoPrepareBeforeClassStarts
ResearchatThompsonRiversUniversity(Garson,2006)revealedthatwhilefacultywhowere interviewedcitedlanguageasthemainchallengeforinternationalstudents,bothinternationaland domesticstudentsidentifiedotherchallengessuchasexpectationsingroupwork,workloadand academicintegrity.Inresponsetothisresearch,IworkedwithateamatTRUtoproducevignettesthat provideinsightintosomeofthechallenges.Therearefourthataddress:contentandcheckingfor understanding,rhetoricalstyleandthethesisstatement,academicintegrityandworkinginagroup. Eachvignetteisacompilationofinstructionthatislessthaneffective,anexplanationoftheunderlying challengeandademonstrationofpossibleadjustmentsbytheinstructorsthathaveproventobemore effectiveforthem.Eachsectiontakesabout15minutes.Includedisalistofreferences. Beforethebeginningofthesemester,itcouldbeusefultowatchthevignettes.Thismayprovidesome insightintowhatisgoingonforthestudents,whichcaninformtheapproachtoteaching. CulturallyDiverseLearnersisavailableasanOpenEducationResourcethroughBCCampusat: http://solr.bccampus.ca:8001/bcc/items/e9c660f506e5ed0a2826 e6abfbc3122e/1/cdl.zip/cdl/index.html Signintopreview. Submissionby EmmaBourassaB.Ed,M.EdCurriculum,EDD(inprogress) ThompsonRiversUniversity,Canada www.tru.ca

FirstDayofClassStudentBuyIn:AdvicefromUnknownMentors
(condensedfromFirstDayofClass(pt.1):SpecificStrategiesarticlebyJeffKingintheApril2012issue ofTransformativeTeacherScholarathttp://www.uco.edu/academicaffairs/cettl/cettlfiles/newsletter docs/201204/201204newsletter.pdf) Brainresearchshowingthatnoveltyhelpsinformationstick(e.g.,Phelps,2004;Weierich,Wright, Negreira,Dickerson,&Barrett,2010)mayaccountforthisphenomenon,butwhateverthereason, leveragingittoyourandyourstudentsbenefitmakessense.Thesimplestrategydescribedbelow createsnoveltybecauseitdisruptsstudentsexpectationaboutthenormalroutineofafirstclassday, yetitisnonthreateninganddoesnotrequireextraworkofstudentsonthefirstdayofclass.(Notthat theresadarnedthingwrongwithstudentsworkingduringthefirstdayofclass,mindyou.) Askyourstudentsinclassthissemestertowritedownadvicetheywouldprovidetostudentswhowill takethecoursethenextterm.Thisisthelowtechversionofmentorinabox.Onthefirstclassday, handtheselettersoutforyournewstudentstoread,thenhavethestudentspassthelettersaround throughafewiterationssothateachstudenthastheopportunitytoreadseveralletters.Thenhavea classdiscussiontosolicitcommonthemesinthelettersofadvice. Manytimesthementorswillhavewrittenthingslike,BesuretodothehomeworkDr.Jonesassignsfor thechapterabout____becauseitreallyhelpsyouunderstandtheconcepts,or,Getyourselfintoa studygrouptogooverthematerialoutsideofclassthatreallyhelpedmeandallmygroupmembers makeitthroughthisclass,etc. Thefactthattheadviceiscomingfromstudentswhohavesurvivedthecourseisthekeything.Your newstudentswouldbelikelytovaluesuchadviceiftheyhadachanceencounterwithyourformer students,knewthosestudentspassedthecourse,andhadtheopportunitytogetpointersonhowto acethecourse. Thedevilishlyeffectiveattributethatmakesthisstrategyimpactfulisthatwhatyourstudentswriteas advicefornewstudentsisgenerallyverypositive,eveniftherecommendationsarethingslike,Because thisissuchahardsubject,youreallyhavetoworkinthisclass,butfollowingthesyllabusandaskingDr. Jonesforhelpwillgetyouthrough. Letyourexitingstudentsbeyourbestambassadorsforyourincomingstudents. Thehightechversionofthisstrategyprobablypacksevenmorepunchforhavingnewstudentsreally taketoheartthesuggestionsgivenbymentors,butittakesabitmoreplanning,time,andtechsavvy expertise(orarrangementsmadetogetassistancewiththetechnology).Whereasthelowtechversion takesonlyafewminutesduringthelastclasssessionwithyourpriorclasswhenstudentswritetheir advice,thehightechversionrequiresaskingstudentstomakevideoswiththeirlaptopsandemailingto youoruploadingthosefilessoyoucanassemblethemintoaPowerpointorPreziorotherpresentation orloadthemintoyourcoursewebshellforaccessingtoshowinclass,etc. Thebeneficialtradeoffforthatbitofextraworkistheimpactthevideoswillmakeonthestudentsand 3

theguaranteedfocusofattentionthatthevideoswillcreate.Whenyouknowyourstudentsarepaying attention,thelikelihoodthattheinformationbeingsharedatthatpointwillberetainedisgreatly enhanced. Whetheryoutakethelowtechorthehightechroute,spendingsometimethefirstclasssession discussingstrategiesforsuccessintheclassanddoingsointhelanguageofpeersasdeliveredby peerscanhelpyourstudentsgreatly. Phelps,E.A.(2004).Humanemotionsandmemory:Interactionsoftheamygdalaandhippocampal complex.Currentopinioninneurobiology,14,198202.Available: http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/myl/llog/Brizendine/Phelps2004.pdf Weierich,M.R.,Wright,C.I.,Negreira,A.,Dickerson,B.C.,&Barrett,L.F.(2010).Noveltyasa dimensionintheaffectivebrain.Neuroimage,49,28712878.Available:http://www.affective science.org/pubs/2010/weierichetal2010.pdf Submittedby JeffKing,Ed.D. ExecutiveDirector CenterforExcellenceinTransformativeTeaching&Learning UniversityofCentralOklahoma www.uco.edu/cettl

ANewTypeofScavengerHuntasanIceBreaker
Recently,Istartedusinganewtypeoficebreakeratthebeginningofmyfirstclass.Itisbestforsmall classessuchasmyintroductorysciencecoursewhichhasabout20students,butitcanbemodifiedfor largeclasses. Thisicebreakerisessentiallyadifferenttypeofscavengerhunt.Priortothefirstclass,Ilookatmy rostertoseethemajorforeachstudent.Ithenmakeupa3columntable.Thelefthandcolumnis headedMajorandlistsallthestudentsmajors;eachmajorislistedasmanytimesasthereare studentswiththismajor.ThemiddlecolumnisheadedClassmatesName.Therighthandcolumnis headedClassmatesFavoriteHobby/Activity.Thecellsinthemiddleandrighthandcolumnsare empty. Iaskthestudentstogetupandfillintheemptycellsbytalkingwiththeirclassmatesforabout1520 minutes.Theroomsoonisbuzzingwithconversation.Thestudentslikethisactivitybecauseitgives themanopportunitytomeettheirclassmatesandlearnsomethingaboutthemsometimeswith surprisingresults.Forexample,twostudentsdiscoveredthattheybothwereicefigureskaters,andtwo AfricanstudentsdiscoveredthattheywerefromthesametribeinNigeria. Thepurposeofthisicebreakeristoletthestudentsmeeteachother,becausetheywillbeplacedin groupsduringthesemesterforlabworkandotherprojects.Thegroupswillchangeperiodically,butthe studentshaveatleastmeteachotherduringtheinitialicebreaker. Forlargeclasses,thetableandprocesscouldbemodifiedasfollows.Therestillwouldbethree columns,eachwith20rowsofemptycells.ThelefthadcolumnwouldbetitledName,themiddle columnMajor,andtherighthandcolumnClassmatesFavoriteHobby/Activity.Thestudentswould getup,starttalkingwithnearbyclassmates,andfillinasmanyrowsaspossiblewithinthe1520 minutesallowed. Submittedby: ErnestC.Linsay Director,FacultyDevelopment&Support WilmingtonUniversity http://www.wilmu.edu/

UsingtheCourseSyllabusasanOpportunitytoPromoteStudentLearning
Manyprofessorsmayaskthemselvesiftheirstudentsreadthecoursesyllabus,andwhatdotheyget outofsuchreading.Inlightofthis,inspringof2011Istartedtoimplementthecreationoflearning contractsinmycourseswithtwopurposesinmind:(1)topromotethereadingofthesyllabusatthe startofthecourseand(2)tofosterselfregulationinstudentslearning.Forthefirstcourseassignment studentspresentadraftofalearningcontractwheretheyestablishalearninggoaltoaccomplishinthe coursefortheterm,andidentifywhattheyconsiderhelpfulfrommeasaprofessorandtheirpeersin ordertoattainsuchgoal.Thecriteriaforthelearninggoalincludes:relationtocoursecontent, achievableintheterm,andmeasureable.Thelearningcontractformatcontainsthefollowingelements: Statementoflearninggoal

Responsetothefollowingquestions: Whatdotheycommittoasstudentsinthecourseinordertoaccomplishsuchgoal? Whatdotheyneedfrommeastheirprofessorinordertoaccomplishtheirlearninggoal? Whatdotheyneedfromtheirpeersinthecourseinordertoaccomplishtheirlearninggoal?

Inordertohelpstudentscompletetheirlearningcontract,thefirstclasssessioninvolvesaworkshopfor studentstolearntowritelearninggoalsusingBlooms(XXX)andFinks(1993)taxonomies.Inthe secondclasssessionstudentsgiveeachotherfeedbackontheirlearningcontracts,makeadjustments, andhanditinattheend. Throughouttheterm,studentsengageinthreeselfassessmentexerciseswheretheyevaluatetheir progresstowardstheirlearninggoals.Thesameselfassessmentinstrumentisusedineachoccasion. Theinstrumentincludesaseriesofclosedandopenendedquestionswherestudentsrespondtoaspects suchas: Perceptionoftheirprogresstowardstheattainmentoftheirlearninggoals Whataspectsoftheclasshavehelpedinthisattainment Whataspectsoftheclasshavemadethisattainmentdifficult Whattheywoulddodifferentlyasstudentsfortherestoftheterminordertoattaintheir learninggoal Whattheywouldlikeformeastheirprofessortododifferentlyfortherestoftheterminorder toattaintheirlearninggoal Whattheywouldlikefortheirpeerstododifferentlyfortherestoftheterminordertoattain theirlearninggoal

Ipresentconsolidatedresultsofeachselfassessmentexerciseinaclasssessionwhichservesasinput forgroupdiscussiononhowtheclassisprogressingandhowtheyfeelaboutsuchprogress.Insum,the learningcontractactivityhasproventobeusefultoengagestudentsinthecoursecontentandformeas theprofessortoidentifyduringthesemestertheaspectsoftheclassthatstudentpercievetohelpand hindertheirlearning. Submittedby: AnabellaMartinez,ProfessoroftheEducationDepartment DirectoroftheCentroforTeachingExcellence(CEDU) UniversidaddelNorte(Barranquilla,Colombia) 6

StrategiesforLearningNamesinLargeClasses
Purpose:Tohelpbuildrapportandshowstudentsthatyoucareaboutthemasindividualseveninlarge classsettings.Learningnamesmakespeoplefeelvalued.Smallinterventionscanmakebigdifferences. StrategyOne(DeeFink) IusedsmallgroupsextensivelyinmylargeGeographycourse.Afterformingthegroupsonthe firstdayofclass,ItookaPolaroidpictureofeachgroup,andtheywrotetheirnamesbytheirindividual picture.Ithenpostedthesepicturesbymydeskinmyofficeandworkedonlearningthenameswithin eachgroup.Afterlearningthenamesinthefirstgroup,Iwouldlearnanewgroupandreviewthe namesinthepreviousgroups,andsoon.Itookaweekortwotogetthemalldone,butIeventually did.Itwasaloteasiertomemorize12groupsof6students,thanitwastomemorize72students. StrategyTwo(DeeFink) Amathprofessorusedassignedseating,madeachart,andtheneachdayofclass,workedon memorizingablockof6students(3infrontand3behind).Eachdaywhenhecametoclass,hemadea pointofvisitingwithstudentsineachnewblockandintheoneshehadalreadylearnedinadditionto theclassingeneral. StrategyThree(GerryWojnar) Imemorizemyrollsheetsaboutaweekbeforeclassesstart,recitingnamesforwardsand backwards.Thenonthefirstdayofclass,Igoaroundtheroomidentifyingstudents,andhalfthework isalreadydonewiththeirnamesalreadyinmemory,thetaskissimplytomatchnamesandfaces.It helpstogivestudentssomeshorttaskatthatpoint(e.g.,fillingoutbasicbackgroundinfocards),during whichtimeIcyclethroughmyrollsheettryingtoidentifyallstudents.ForafewIllcallouttheirnames whiletheywork.Lastly,Illtrytorevisitnamesandfacesbygoingaroundtheroomtoreciteallthe studentsnames,preferablywithoutreferencetotherollsheet. StrategyFour(GerryWojnar) Amandatoryofficevisitfromstudentsinthefirst10daysofthesemester,evenifjusttosay hello,alsohelps.Suchbreaktheicevisitsalsoseemtopromotemorecontentfocusedofficevisitsas thesemesterprogresses. StrategyFive(KejingLiu) Imanagetoremembermystudentsnamesfirstbyaskingthemtomakeanamecardandplace itatthetablethiswillhelpmerelatethenamewiththeseat,andthenbyencouragingthemtositat thesameseatfornexttwoorthreeclassmeetings. 7

StrategySix(KejingLiu) Ialwaysaskmyclassestofilloutastudentinformationcardwiththefollowinginformation: CourseNumber______________________ Name:__________________Nameyouliketobecalled:_____________________ 1wordforyourlearningstyle:____________________________________________ 2wordsforyourinterests:______________________,_________________________ 3wordsforyourpersonality:____________,_______________,_________________ 4wordsforyourbeliefsinchildren:________,___________,__________.__________ IamanEarlyChildhoodfaculty,whichexplainswhyIaskfortheirbeliefsinchildren.Tryit,andyouwill learnalotofinterestingthingsaboutyourstudentsitwillhelpyoualottorememberyourstudents veryquickly. StrategySeven(SusanRobison) Havestudentsmakename"tents"outofcardboardorcardstockthatyouprovide.Theyraise theirtenteverytimetheywishtobecalledon.Theycanalsoputthetentontheirdesksoastheydo projects,labs,orgroupworkyoucanassociatethenamesandfaces.Withbothoftheseapproaches, youhavetodecideifwillyoucollectthetentsandbringthemtoclassortrustthestudentstobring them. StrategyEight(SusanRobison) Ifyouhaveaccesstostudentphotos[aswedoatUTSA],youcanmakeaseatingchartandstudy thepicturesandnamesbeforethecourseevenstarts. StrategyNine(SusanRobison) Whenthestudentscomeforofficehours,ask,"Pleaseremindmeyourname."Takenoteson themeetingespeciallyonanyfollowupyoupromisetodo.
Submitted by Barbara Millis Teaching and Learning Center University of Texas at San Antonio http://www.utsa.edu/tlc/

RemembertoConsiderLearningSpace
Oftenwhenplanninginstructionweareaskedtostateourgoal,intentionoroutcome.Thisfocusesour instructionalandassessmentefforts,andwhenproperlyconveyedtolearners,itenablesthemto understandwherethingsareheadingandwhatmightcountintermsofamarkorgrade.Thegrowing popularityofauthentic,realworldassessmenttasksreflectsourattemptstofocusstudentefforton learninghowtodothesortsofthingstheywillneedtodointheirchosencareers.Butastimegoeson andwegainmoreexperienceteaching,wecometounderstandthattheskillsrequiredtoproducethose realworldproductsareoftenhidden.Thoseskillsmayincludecriticalorcreativethinking,sense making,crossculturalcompetency,socialintelligence,cognitiveloadmanagementandvirtual collaborationtonamejustafew.Sowebegintorealizethatnotalllearningcanbecapturedbyour oftennarrowlystatedintentions. Aswegetexperiencedintheteachingbusinesswerealizethatstatedgoalsactuallycaptureverylittleof whatstudentsactuallylearn.Sohere'smytip: Thenexttimeyouwritesomekindofoutcomeorgoalorintentionorobjective,andanaccompanying assessmenttask,writeitandthenanswerthisquestion: Whattypeoflearningspacewillprovidethebestplaceforlearnerstopracticedevelopingtheskillsthey willneedtoachievesuccessinthistask? Thiswillfocusyourattentiononprocesshowactuallywillstudentsbeabletogoabouttheirlearning? Whatconditionsarenecessaryforthemtobeabletoflourishunderyourinstruction?Theanswerswill guideyouattowhatkindoflearningspaceyouwillcreatethatwillaccomplishyourobjectivebutwill allowimportantlysomemuchmorericherandmorepersonallearningtooccur. Inthissensealearningspaceextendsfarbeyondthephysicalandintothewholelearningenvironment thatweasteachersarecapableofcreatingforourstudents

Submitted by Tony Fetherston Centre for Learning and Development Edith Cowan University Perth, Australia http://www.ecu.edu.au/centres/centre-for-learning-and-development/overview

TheKeyComponentsofIntegratedCourseDesign
Dee Finks Model

Learning Goals

Teaching and Learning

Feedback & Assessment

Situationa l

Factors

Whendesigningorredesigningacourse,DeeFinkandothersrecommendthatyoufirstdetermineall thesituationalfactorsthatwillinfluencethecoursethecourselevel,whetheritisrequiredoran elective,thetimeofday,theclassroomlayout,yourteachingexperience,etc.inordertoputthe courseincontext.Then,asStephenCoveyrecommends,Beginwiththeendinmindbyfocusingon thelearninggoalsyouhaveforstudents.Thisapproachissometimescalledabackwardsdesign model,promptedbyquestionssuchas,Whatdoyouwantyourstudentstolooklikebytheendofthe semester?Fiveyearsafterthecoursehasended?Whatshouldtheyknowaboutthesubject?What shouldtheybeabletodowithwhattheyknow?Whatshouldtheyvalueaboutthediscipline?Then youmovetothefeedbackandassessmentplanning:Howwillyouknowthatstudentshavemetyour learninggoals.Howcanyoudesignauthenticassessmentsthatenablethemtofocusondoing somethinginthefuture,notmerelyregurgitatingfacts.Finally,whatcreativeclassroomandoutofclass assignments(eitherfacetofaceoronline)willpromoteyourlearninggoals?Whenallyourcourse elementsarewelldesignedandwellintegrated,yourcourseissaidtobeinalignmentandthereisa strongprobabilitythatyouwillbeteachingforsignificantlearning. SubmittedbyBarbaraMillis TeachingandLearningCenter UniversityofTexasatSanAntonio http://www.utsa.edu/tlc/

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AVisualRepresentationofYourCourse
Haveyoueverwonderedwhatyoucoulddotohelpyourstudentsunderstandwhyyouareteaching whatyouteachandintheorderandmannerinwhichyouteachit? Asthefacultymember,youknowthestructureofthecourseandwhythetopicsarepresentedina certainorder,butdothestudentsreallygetit? Whynottryproducingavisualrepresentationofyourcourse?UniversalDesignforLearning (http://www.cast.org/udl/index.html)suggeststhatmultipleoptionsforrepresentationofcontent (http://www.udlcenter.org/aboutudl/udlguidelines/principle1)isagreatwaytohelpstudents understandcontentbyguidinginformationprocessingandtransferoflearningacrosstopicsandthe courseasawhole.Therearemultiplewaystoshowtheflowofthecourse.Youmightdrawaconcept mapandscanitintocreateadigitalpicturetodisplay.Youcoulduseafreeconceptmappingsoftware programlikeCmap(http://cmap.ihmc.us/) oranysoftwarethatwouldallowyoutousetoolstocreateaflowofideas,MicrosoftWordandPower Pointdothis,aswellasthefreeonlinetoolPresi.(http://prezi.com/).Thepointofthisvisual representationistocreateanalternatewayofcommunicatingabouthowyourcourseworksandhow thetopicsinyourcourserelatetoeachotherandthelargerideasinyourareaofstudy. PreparedbyHollyB.Parker,Ed.D. CenterforTeachingandLearning UniversalDesignforLearningGrantTeam UniversityofVermont Submittedby HenriettaMarcellaMenzies,MSIN AcademicServicesProfessionalSenior CenterforTeaching&Learning UniversityofVermont Email:hmenzies@uvm.edu

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WarmUps
Igottogetonthegoodfoot Gottodoitonthegoodfoot Doitwiththegoodfoot GetontheGoodFoot,writtenbyFredWesley,JamesBrown,JoeMims;performedbyJamesBrown Howcanyougetoffonagoodfootatthebeginningofeachclassperiod?Howcanyouwakeupyour studentsandgetthemreadytogetdowntothebusinessoflearning? OneveryeffectiveteachingtipthatIhaveusedforyearsiswhatIcallwarmups.Warmupsarelike preexercisestretches,butforthemind(andtheattentionspan). Usuallyontheseconddayofclass,Iinformmystudentsthatatthebeginningofeachclassperiod throughoutthesemester,wewilldevotethefirst57minutestoawarmup.Warmupsconsistof somethingtochallengethemind,engagethestudents,andbeginclassperiodsinafunway.Sometimes warmupsrelatetosomethingwevebeendiscussinginclass,sometimestheydonot.Someofmy favoritewarmupsaregamesinwhichIcompeteagainsttheclass,whoactsasateam.Gamesthat workwellforwarmupsincludeTwentyQuestionsandHangman.Usually,thestudentsarethe guessers,butsometimesItakeonthatroleandtrytofigureoutwhatmystudentsarethinking.At othertimes,thestudentsandIworktogetherasateaminplayingagainstwebversionsofthesegames: http://www.20q.net/ http://www.hangman.no/ http://www.hangmanonline.com/ TheonlinegameSporclealsoworkswell,andusersarecontinuallyaddingnewgames: http://www.sporcle.com/ Onlinewordgamesarealsogreat.Therearemanylocatedat:http://www.wuzzlesandpuzzles.com/ Riddlesalsoworknicely,asdoshort(usuallyhumorous)YouTubeclips.Thesearejustafew suggestions.Anythingthatisbrief,interactive,andinvolvessolvingapuzzleorhavingalaughwould probablyworkasawarmup.Infact,asthesemesterprogresses,Ioftenhavestudentsemailingme withsuggestionsforwarmups. Iamamazedathowactivelystudentsengageinthesekindsofwarmups,anditdoesseemtomakea differenceinmotivationlevels.For90minuteclasses,Isometimessavethewarmupsasamidclass refresher.Tome,fiveminutesofclasstimeisasmallpricetopayformystudentsattention. Submittedby FredW.Sanborn,Ph.D. AssociateProfessorofPsychology&Director,Teaching&LearningCenter NorthCarolinaWesleyanCollege fwsanborn@ncwc.edu 12

LowTechClassroomResponseSystems(Clickers)
Haveyouwantedtouseclickersinclasstogaugestudentsunderstanding,butyoudontnecessarily wanttospendthetimedevelopingthePowerPointsorthequestionsonlinethatsomesystemsuse?Or perhapsyourenotsureifyouwantstudentstoinvestinthembecauseyourenotsurehowoftenyoull usethem,andyoudontwantthemtowastemoneytoonlyusethematimeortwoduringthe semester,orifyoureconsideringawebsitelikehttp://www.polleverywhere.com,yourenotsureyou wantstudentsgettingouttheirphonesafteryouveworkedsohardtogetthemtoputthedevices away!Youmaywanttotrysomethinglowtechtoseeifyoulikeusingastudentresponsesystemfirst, too.Herearetwowaystomakelowtechclickersforclassthatdontinvolvecellphonesorother electronicgadgets. ThefirstistocreateaWorddocumentthathasatablewith2columnsand3rows,placingaletterin5 oftheboxesanda?inthe6thboxforthechoicesstudentsmighthave.Thetablewouldlooklikethis:

A C E

B D ?

Thenprintthemandgiveonetoeachstudent(orpostthemonBlackboardandaskstudentstoprintand bringthemtoclass).Studentscanthenfoldthesheetofpapertodisplaytheletterfortheanswer optionthatiscorrectorthattheymostagreewith.Theycandisplaya?iftheytrulyhavenoidea. Asecondlowtechwaytodothisistobuydifferentcoloredindexcardsandgivestudentsonecolored cardforA,anothercolorforB,andsoon,rememberingtohaveacolorfor?,aswell.Youcandistribute packetsofthecardsonthefirstdayofclassandaskstudentstoalwaysbringthem. Whileusingtheselowtechpaperstudentresponsesystemsdoesnotallowtheanonymitythattheir electroniccounterpartsdo,thepapermethoddoesallowforyoutostillgetanideaofwhatstudentsdo ordontunderstand.Youalsowillhavethechancetoaskthemtofindsomeonewhohasadifferent answerdisplayedthantheydoanddiscusswhytheyeachchosetheanswertheydid.Thenhave everyonesharetheiranswersagain,changingiftheyneedtodoso.Therefore,thegivingupof anonymityprovidessomechancesforinteractionthatcantbehadinquitethesamewayaswithareal clicker. Submittedby WrenMills,PhD FacultyCenterforExcellenceinTeaching WesternKentuckyUniversity www.wku.edu/teaching

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UsePowerPointtoPromptEngagingLearningActivitiesDuringClass
DilbertdepictsPowerPointpresentationsasadirectroutetoslumberandemployeerevolt.PowerPoint presentationsneednotbedeadly.Instructorscancreateslidesthatpromptclassactivitiesthatengage students,motivatemeaningfulclassdiscussion,andpromotedeeplearning(Berk,2011). Instructorscommonlyorganizeandplanthepresentationofcontentwhiletheycreateasetof PowerPointslides.Considercreatingslidestoplanandpromptengaginglearningactivitiesatkeypoints duringaclasspresentation. Instructorswhousepersonalresponsesystems(clickers)canaddaslidethatposesaquestionto evaluatestudentunderstandingofacriticalconceptortoaskstudentstoapplyamodelorprincipletoa specificapplication.Allowstudentsamomenttothinkindividuallyordiscussthequestioninsmall groupsbeforetheyrecordtheirresponsetothequestionwiththeirclickers. Aninstructorwhodoesnotuseclickerscanpresentaslidethatposesaquestionasapromptforsmall groupdiscussion(e.g.,asapairshareactivity)orabriefinclasswrittenresponsetothequestion(e.g.,a minutepaper). Shareresponsestothepromptwiththeentireclass.Ifusingclickerquestions,displayachart summarizingthepatternofresponsesfromthegroup.Otherwise,askforashowofhandsfortypical responsesorinitiateaclassdiscussioninwhichseveralgroupsreporttheconsensusresponsefromtheir discussion. Wrapupthediscussionandrefocusattentiononthecontentthattriggeredtheactivity. Ifcommonmisconceptionsaboutthecriticalconceptemergeinthepatternofresponses,spend sometimedefusingthesemisconceptions. Ifthepromptaskedforapplicationtoarealworldproblem,discussandevaluatethestrengths andweaknessesoftheapplicationsproposed. Ifthepromptaskedforopinionsonacontroversialtopic,asktheclasstodiscussthestrengths andweaknessesofthedifferentpositionsthatemerge. Includenomorethanoneortwooftheseengagementslidesduringaclasssessiontoengagestudent interestandfocusattentiononcriticalpointsforthedayslesson. Berk,R.A.(2011).Powerpointengagementtechniquestofosterdeeplearning.JournalofFaculty Development,25,4548. Bruff,D.(2009).Teachingwithclassroomresponsesystems:Creatingactivelearningenvironments. SanFrancisco,CA:JosseyBass. Submittedby: ClaudiaJ.Stanny,Ph.D.,Director CenterforUniversityTeaching,Learning,andAssessment UniversityofWestFlorida uwf.edu/cutla/ 14

Cases/RolePlaying/JigsawATeachingTechniqueforExploringMultiple Perspectives
Therearemanyteachingtechniquesthatgetstudentsengagedbyhavingthemdiscussandapplycourse content.Usingcasestudies,havingstudentsroleplay,andemployingcooperativelearningstrategies areafewexamples. Casesarenarrativesthataddressrealisticissues,basedonactualeventsorcontrived,thatprovidea basisforstudentdiscussion. Roleplayinghasstudentsassumetherolesofcharactersinafictionalsetting.Playerstakeresponsibility foractingouttheseroleswithinanarrative,eitherthroughliteralactingorthroughaprocessof structureddecisionmakingorcharacterdevelopment. TheJigsawtechniqueisacooperativelearningstrategythathasstudentsinteractingwithothersin groupstodevelopandrefinetheirunderstandingofsomeissue.Studentsmeetinahomegroup, dispersetojoindifferentsecondgroups,andthenreconveneintheirhomegroups(thus,thejigsaw designation). Thefollowingteachingtechnique,createdbyajournalismprofessorattheUniversityofHawaii(Brislin, 1995),isacombinationoftheaboveandcanbeusedwithanytopichavingmultipleperspectives.It involvessomepreparationandwillprobablytakeanentireclassperiodsoitisnotatechniquetobe usedwithoutcarefulplanningoronethatwouldbeusedmanytimesduringthesemester. 1)Assignacaseforthestudentstoread(withsupportingdocumentsifdesired)thatprovidessufficient informationonthetopictoallowforarichdiscussion.Thiscouldbeahypotheticalcasethatyouhave written,onethatyouacquiredthroughsomeeducationalresource,oronethatyouconstructedbased onsomenewsevent.Asecondoptionthatyoucoulduseis,inlieuofaprewrittencase,istoprovide thestudentswithmaterialsandreferences(forexample,newsclippingsorweblinks)thatyouhave assembledforthemtostudy.Athirdalternativeistohavestudentsresearchthetopicthemselves.If thisalternativeischosen,youmightwanttoassignashortpaperforanindividualgradesummarizing whatwasreadorresearchedtoensurethateachstudentbringssufficientinformationtothegroup. 2)Inclass,createequalsizedgroupsof46students.Thenumberofgroupsdependsonthenumberof perspectivesthatcouldbetakeninthecase.Assigneachgroupmemberanumber. 3)Assigneachgrouparolebasedonthecharactersinthecaseand/orthedifferentperspectives.Itis probablybestnottoassigntherolespriortoclasstoensurethateachstudenthasthebroadest understandingofthecase. 4)Eachgroupdiscussesthecasefromtheirassignedcharacterorperspective.Allowupto10minutes forthisactivity. 5)Reorganizegroupsbystudentnumbersothatnewgroupsresulteachhavingatleastonemember fromeachperspective.

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6)Studentsinthesenew"jigsaw"groupsarguethecasefor20minutesbypresentingtheperspectiveof theroletheyareplayingwhileconsideringandanalyzingtheperspectivesoftheothers. 7)Studentsthenreturntotheiroriginalgroupsandsharetheperspectivestheyreceivedintheirjigsaw groupsthatmayhavemadethemrethinktheiroriginalposition.Allowupto10minutesforthisactivity. 8)Theexercisecouldculminatewithaclassdiscussionaboutthetopic.Eachstudent,havingnowheard multipleperspectivesontheissue,couldbeassignedtowriteashortpositionpaper(inclassoras homework)onwhatstanceoractionheorshewouldpersonallytakeinthiscasewritingthepaperas themselvesandnottherolethattheyplayed. Forexample,ifanenvironmentalissueweretobeaddressed,studentscouldarguefromthe perspectivesofamemberofthegeneralpublic,arepresentativefromabusinesscompany,ascientist, orapolitician.Thistechniquelendsitselfwelltodisciplinesthataddressmultiplepointsofview whethertheissueismedical,political,economic,ethical,orsomeotherdisciplinespecifictopic. Brislin,T.(1995).Activelearninginappliedethicsinstruction.JournalonExcellenceinCollegeTeaching. 6(3):8795. Submittedby BillBurke CenterfortheEnhancementofLearningandTeaching(CELT) UniversityofKentucky http://www.uky.edu/celt/

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NotJustFunandGames!StructureClassDemonstrationstoReinforceLearning Goals
Classroomdemonstrationsthatillustrateanimportantprocess,phenomenon,orapplicationofa conceptcangenerateinterestandengagestudentswithcoursematerial.Althoughstudentsenjoy classroomdemonstrations,theysometimesremembertheactivitybutdonotrememberthecourse learninggoalsthatinstructorswanttopromotewhentheydesignthedemonstration.Aneffective demonstrationconnectsstudentmemoriesoftheclassroomexperiencewiththeconceptstheactivity wasdesignedtodemonstrate. Strategiesthattransformanentertainingdemonstrationintoaneffectivelearningexperience Identifythelearningoutcome(s)youintendtopromotewiththeclassroomdemonstration.For example,ademonstrationthatillustratesacounterintuitiveorsurprisingoutcomecanbeusedto identifyassumptionsthatleadstudentstomakeerroneouspredictions.Studentsexperience surpriseatunexpectedresults,whichmotivatescuriosityandencouragesstudentstogiveweight andcredibilitytodisciplinaryconceptsandmodelsthatexplainthesefindings. Practicethedemonstrationtoensureitworksproperlyduringclass. Preparestudentsforthedemonstration.Observationsarebiasedbypreconceptions(Bransford& Johnson,1972).Twoobserversofthesameeventwillrememberitdifferentlyiftheyexperiencethe eventwithdifferentframeworksandexpectations(Holst&Pezdek,1992).Dontassumestudents willnoticethedetailsyounoticeorinterpretthedemonstrationinthesamewayyoudo.Beginwith anexplanationthatgivesstudentstheframeworktheyneedtofocustheirattentiononthemost relevantaspectsofthedemonstration.Remindstudentsabouttherelationbetweenobservations duringthedemonstrationandthecoursematerial. Ifpossible,makestudentspredicttheoutcomebeforeyouconductthedemonstration. Afterthedemonstrationisfinished,askstudentstodiscusstheoutcomeandtheirobservationswith eachotherandtheclassasawhole. Reinforcethepurposeofthedemonstrationwithadebriefingdiscussionthatidentifiesandexplains theprinciplesdemonstrated.Explicitlyconnecttheobservationsfromthedemonstrationtocourse contentandthelearninggoalsfortheactivity.Usethecuriosityelicitedbyasurprisingoutcometo focusattentionondisciplinaryexplanationsthatarebasedonvaliddisciplinaryassumptionsand modelsratherthanthenavemodelsstudentsusedwhentheymadetheirinitialprediction. Askstudentstotakeaminuteortwotowriteareflectiononthedemonstration.Whatdidthey learnfromthisexperience?Whatwasthepurposeofincludingthisactivityintheclass?Reflective writingwillreinforcestudentlearning.Theseessayswillalsorevealareasthatcontinuetoconfuse students,whichinstructorscanusetorefinethedemonstrationforuseinfutureclasses.

Bransford,J.D.,&Johnson,M.K.(1972).Contextualprerequisitesforunderstanding:Some investigationsofcomprehensionandrecall.JournalofVerbalLearningandVerbalBehavior,11, 717726. Holst,V.F.,&Pezdek,K.(1992).Scriptsfortypicalcrimesandtheireffectsonmemoryforeyewitness testimony.AppliedCognitivePsychology,6,573587. Pyper,B.A.(2008).BestpracticesinphysicsdemonstrationsorOh,Ithoughtthiswasjustfor entertainment.PowerPointslidesforapresentationattheAAPTUT/IDsectionmeeting,Boise,

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ID.RetrievedAugust2,2011: http://emp.byui.edu/PyperB/Best%20Practices%20in%20Physics%20Demonstrations.pdf Submittedby: ClaudiaJ.Stanny,Ph.D.,Director CenterforUniversityTeaching,Learning,andAssessment UniversityofWestFlorida uwf.edu/cutla/

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TheCrosswordPuzzleasThresholdtoHigherOrderThinking
Oneofthemostdifficulttasksweencounterwithstudentsismovingthembeyondamereaccumulation offactualmaterialinclass.Oftenourtransmissionoflowerorderthinkingskills(rememberingand understanding)issomewhatakintotheproverbialgivingofafishtothehungryindividual.Increasingly inthe21stcentury,wearerecognizingtheneedtoteachourstudentshowtofish;thatis,howcanwe bestteachtheskillsforhigherorderthinking. OneeffectivethresholdtothetoplevelonBloomsrevisedpyramidoflearning,creating,isthe crosswordpuzzle,andperhapsthefirstmajorgoalitcanachieveishelpingstudentstobecomeadeptat amajorskillincreating,perceptionshifting,orlearningtolookatagivenissueorproblemfrom multipleperspectives. Supposeyouprovideyourstudentswithacrosswordpuzzlegridwhere1Acrossisfourletterswitha clueofFirstplace.Since2012isanOlympicyear,onestudentintheclassisboundtocallout, GOLD. Withouthaving1,2,3,and4Down,itsdifficulttoknowifGOLDiscorrect,butletssayyoupronounce thatanswerwrongandhelpthestudentsbyaskingtothinkintermsofbiology.BothCELLand WOMBareexcellentsuggestions,butwedoubtyoullgetthemforawhile.Why?Yourstudentswill havetroubleshiftinggearfromonefieldofperceptiontoanother.Psychologyhasaprincipleoften referredtoastheprimacyofthefirst,whichstatesthatonceourmindsettlesonsomething,changing thatthoughtisdifficult. Youcouldprovideyourstudentswiththefish,CELLandWOMB,oryoucouldfurtherillustratethe problembyofferingthelensofstillanotherfieldsuchasreligionandwatchthemstumbletocomeup withEDEN. Oryoucouldteachthemhowtofishbyexplainingwhatperceptionshiftisandwhyitsdifficult.You couldextendthatteachingmomentbyhavingstudentsbecomecruciverbalists(solvers/constructorsof crosswordpuzzles)andcreatesomemoreofthecrosswordpuzzle,therebymovingthemupBlooms RevisedPyramid. Submittedby CharlieSweet,EasternKentuckyUniversity HalBlythe,EasternKentuckyUniversity RustyCarpenter,EasternKentuckyUniversity ShawnApostel,EasternKentuckyUniversity

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ImprovingSmallGroupWorkthroughRoleClarification
ErinHill,Ph.D. UniversityofWashingtonBothell Goal:ToIncreaseEffectivenessofSmallGroupWork Rationale:Byassigningeachgroupmemberaspecificrole,theinstructorcanavoidthetypicalpitfallsof smallgroupwork,suchasunevenparticipationanddifficultystayingontask.Assigningstudentsspecific rolescreatesanenvironmentconducivetopeerlearningandenableseffectiveteamwork. Method: 1) Instructorfacilitatesalargegroupdiscussionofgroupworknorms.Amongstthosethatthe instructorshouldensuregetdiscussedarethefollowing: a. Practiceactivelisteningskills b. Askforhelpwhenneeded... c. butdontaskotherstodoyourworkforyou d. Offerhelpwhenasked e. butdontdootherpeoplesworkforthem f. Playyourrole 2) Instructorintroducesandexplainsroles.Instructoremphasizesthateachpersonisresponsiblefor understandingandplayingtheirrole.Theinstructorcantweaktherolestofittheirneeds;one exampleisattached1. 3) Randomlyassigngroupmembers;heresonefunwaytodothat: a. Getadeckofplayingcards(morethan1forclasseslargerthan52) b. Distributethecards c. Havestudentsgroupthemselvesbycard(e.g.,Acesofallsuitswillsittogether) d. Putcopyofgrouprolesoneachdesk 4) Forreportingback,eitherhavestudentshandintheircardsandthenselectrandomly,orhavea seconddeckandchoosefromthere. 5) Getfeedbackfromthestudentsastohowtheprocesswenteitherthroughdiscussion, anonymouswrittenfeedbackorsomecombinationofmethods. 6) Tweakaccordinglyandenjoy! AdaptedfromElizabethCohensDesigningGroupwork:StrategiesfortheHeterogeneousClassroom. Writtenby ErinHill,Ph.D. UniversityofWashingtonBothell Submittedby KarenRosenberg WritingCenterDirector UniversityofWashingtonBothell www.uwb.edu/writingcenter

ThankstoDr.RobinAngotti,AssociateProfessorofEducationattheUniversityofWashingtonBothell,forthis exampleaswellasthemethodforassigninggroupmembers.
1

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OnlineCollaboration:TheNewGroupFormat
Likemanyprofessorsinmyagegroup,thetransitionfromlecturebased,traditionalclassroommodels totechnologyinclusive,collaborativeapproachestoadultlearningdidnotcomeeasilyornaturallyfor me.However,Iarrivedattherealizationthatstudentstoday,evengoodstudents,weresimplyunable toadequatelyassimilateinformationwithtraditional,instructordriven,models.Continued effectivenessintheclassroomwouldrequirenewskillsandadjustmentsonmypart. Ibegantoseekoutvariousonlinetoolstoencourageinteractionandcollaborativework.Idiscovereda productcalledEvernotethatallowsstudentstosharevirtualnotebookssotheycancompile materialsforgroupprojectsinoneplace.Evernoteisafreeserviceavailableonmostelectronic devices.ItallowsuserstotypenotesintoanEvernotenotebookandaccessthosenotesfrom anywhere.Studentsmayrecordinformationintext,audioorvisualformatwithtextbeingsearchable withinimages. Inaprojectgroup,eachstudentisabletogotothedocumentstoredinEvernoteandeditorrevise, thuseliminatingthefrustrationstudentsoftenhaveinrelationtocoordinatingschedulestoarrange meetingtimesforgroupwork.Everyonehasaccesstoallofthearticlesandotherresourcesforthe projectandcanaddresourcesatanytime.Suddenly,studentswerecontributingmore,creatingmore asagroup,insteadofrelyingononepersontocompiletheproject,andcompletingprojectswithinthe timeframesassigned.Complaintsrelatedtosocialloafingsubsided.Myskepticismwaned. AsIponderedotherwaysthatstudentsmightbeabletoworktogetherfromadistance,Idiscovered StudyBlue.ThecollaborativefeaturesofStudyBluearepartofwhatearnedthemaplaceinthe 2012,Top25WebsitesforTeachingandLearning,awardedbytheAmericanAssociationofSchool Librarians.1StudyBluecreatedtheabilityforstudentstosharevirtualbackpackswiththeir classmates,enablingcollaborationofaflashcarddatabasefortheirspecificcourse,textordiscipline. Studentscanlearnfromclassmatesaswellasapproximatelyonemillionusersworldwide,whoadd roughly2millionnewflashcardseachweekthroughtheshareddatabase.2Asstudentsentertheir flashcard,theyareshownapproximately30relatedcardsfromtheirclassmatesorstudentsingeneral. Theycanthenaddanotherstudentscardtotheirdeck,usetheirown,orboth. EvernoteteamedupwithStudyBluetoallowstudentstotaketheirEvernotenotebooksand transferthemtotheirvirtualbackpackinStudyBluewheretheycanmaketheirinteractiveflashcards (whichcanincludetext,audioandimagery),studyguidesandquizzesthatareavailableonbothdesktop andmobiledeviceswithouthavingtoretypedata.Evernoteaccounts,orspecificnotebookswithin accounts,canbesettoautomaticallysyncwithStudyBlueuponloginatStudyBlue. Inmyclass,IencouragestudentstotypenotesinEvernoteorexportthemfromWordinto Evernote,syncandstudywithStudyBlue.Thisabilitytoaccessnotesandflashcardsquicklyand easily,viamobiledevice,hasincreasedinteractionwiththematerialandencouragedstudentstobuild theirknowledgebasetogether.Bothtoolsappealtoourtechsavvystudentpopulationbyprovidinga cuttingedge,convenientwaytoaccomplishcourseobjectivesandprojects.

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Habley,Jennifer,(2012)AASLannounces2012BestWebsitesforTeachingandLearning.RetrievedfromAmericanLibraryAssociaiton,

http://www.ala.org/aasl/guidelinesandstandards/bestlist/bestwebsitestop25
2

Klndt,Christopher.(2012)StudyBlueUnveilsWorldsLargestDigitalStudyGroup.RetrievedfromStudyBlue, http://www.studyblue.com/about/press/studyblueunveilsworldslargestdigitalstudygroup/

Submittedby BethWhiteBigler TennesseeTeachingandLearningCenter TheUniversityofTennessee,Knoxille http://tenntlc.utk.edu/

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VoiceThread
OnemyabsolutefavoriteonlinetoolsisVoiceThread(freeversionsathttp://voicethread.com).Thisisa toolthatallowsphotostobeuploaded,texttobeincluded,andaudiothreads.Itisawayforeveryone intheclasstocollaborateonatopic.ConsiderthisatestwilltakeplaceonFridaycoveringJames Madison.Astheinstructor,Igettheballrollingbyputtinghispictureinthemiddleoftheboard.ThenI postanaudioquestion(notanactualtestquestionbutsomethingintheballpark)andinvitethe studentstoaddinformationthatwouldanswerthequestion.Ialsoinvitethestudentstostartasking otherquestionsorpostinginformationtheyfindimportantandlikelytobecoveredontheexam.I emailthemthelinkorpostitinclass(thisworksforonlineandonground)andaskthemto contribute.Violawenowhavestudentsteachingeachother,reviewingthematerials,andinteractively engagedinstudy!Thisisalsoanicesummaryreviewthatcanbesharedinclasspriortotheexam. Wanttoaddatwistcollaboratewithaninstructorinanotheruniversity(howaboutinanotherpartof theworld)thatmightbecoveringaconceptyouare.Thisisagreatwayforthetwoclassestostart discussinghowvariousculturesmanageasituationorsimplyhandlethetopic.Talkaboutglobal learning! PennyLorenzo AssistantDeanofFaculty SchoolofLegalStudies KaplanUniversity

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OnlineWritingInstructionbeyondtheDiscussionBoard
Teaching writing online may seem intuitive for many faculty given all of the writing that actually happens in online courses discussion boards, peerreview projects, research papers, and more. However, using the Framework for Success in Postsecondary Writing report (http://wpacouncil.org/framework/) as an intellectual and pedagogical springboard for invigorating and improving online writing instruction can be especially helpful for instructors who teach content areas that promote inquiry through writing, online or otherwise. The Council of Writing Program Administrators, National Council of Teachers of English, and the National Writing Project worked together to research the reports eight habits of the mind for student writers. The eight habits are values most, if not all, educators embrace and strive to nurture in students and writers: Curiosity Openness Engagement Creativity Persistence Responsibility Flexibility Metacognition

So, how might one go about encouraging these values online, especially for writing communities who work exclusively or partially online? Here are a few suggested resources that embrace the multifaceted nature of writing beyond the discussion board: Curiosity WebQuests learnercreated or facultycrafted embrace inquirycentered, collaborative lessons for team learning in addition to visual resources such as the cloudbased graphic organizer creation site, bubbl.us. Sites like Quadrivial Quandary also prompt students to revel in (and practice) word play, pure and simple. Openness Building community and praxis through lowstakes, weekly writing opportunities such as Twitter (miniwriting labs that focus on thesis statements or ways to curate timely research) and blogs such as Blogger or Wordpress help students write for authentic audiences (in addition to receiving and responding to peer review comments along the way). Engagement Online writing conferences between student and professor and/or peer groups can be incredibly instructive. Decide first if the conferences you hold will be asynchronous, for instance, backandforth email or a selfpaced Google Document, or synchronous, realtime web conferences via programs like Adobe Connect, Google chat, Skype, and others. Beth Hewetts terrific book, The Online Writing Conference: A Guide for Teachers and Tutors (2010), highlights how inviting students to set agendas for writing conferences invests students in the learning process.

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Creativity Finding ones voice, especially in writing, can sometimes be difficult. Depending on the conventions and styles you want students to write in, consider inspiring them with some of these clever finds: Finding Your Voice by Leo Babauta, Zen Habits blog I Write Like (find out which famous writer you sound the most like) 750 Words a Day: A great writing tool for students who benefit from daily practice Persistence The online environment is, in many respects, ideal for the everevolving writing lab and student! Help students take stock of where theyre at in the writing process by providing personalized feedback through screencasting programs such as Jing and Screenr or embedded audio comments in Microsoft Word. To learn more, I highly recommend reading a recent Journal of Interactive Technology & Pedagogy article, Talking with Students through Screencasting: Experimentations with Video Feedback to Improve Student Learning (Thompson & Lee, 2012). Responsibility To foster student ownership in the writing process, online writing projects should include: A clearly written assignment sheet A timeline that incorporates the writing process and describes how students will receive feedback from peers and the instructor, when applicable A rubric that establishes how the final essay or project will be graded A reminder that students should speak up if something is confusing or vexing and not to wait until the last minute to post writing online (Murphys law is real) Flexibility Whenever possible, give students options and choices within writing tasks. Understand that students are learning new technologies too; they may need a boost and/or explicit instruction in learning how to use the Learning Management System, web conferencing tool, etc. Metacognition Selfevaluation is essential to building reflective students. VoiceThread works well for this purpose. Furthermore, a sample student selfevaluation may include questions like these (Cully, 2002). Consider having students create online revision portfolios, where earlier work is improved and a reflective letter or analysis explains how and why these revisions were made towards the end of the semester. For more information about online writing instruction, consider the following useful and timely texts: Scott Warnocks Teaching Writing Online: How & Why (2009) Beth L. Hewetts The Online Writing Conference: A Guide for Teachers and Tutors (2010) CCCC Committee on Best Practices in Online Writing Instruction (2013) Submitted by: Michaella Hammond Assistant Director for Instructional Design Saint Louis University www.slu.edu 25

EnhanceStudentCollaborationwithOnlineTools:GoogleApps
Facultymemberscareabouteffectiveteachingandstudentengagement.Sometimesinconversation, facultymembersvoiceconcernsaboutstudentcollaboration.Letsconsidertwoofthemostcommon: Accountability:HowdoIholdallstudentsintheteamaccountablefordoingtheirshareofthe work?Howdomembersofateamholdeachotheraccountable? Timeconstraints:HowdoIengagestudentsinmeaningfulcollaborativeworkwhenittakessomuch classtime? Someoftheemergingeducationaltechnologiesmightbeabletoaddresstheseprevalentconcernsin aneasyanduserfriendlymanner.ThissummerNYIThasadoptedGoogleAppsforEducation.Wenow haveaccesstoasuiteoftoolsthatallowstudentstocollaboratefromanylocationandatanytime andthatkeeptrackofindividualscontributionstothework. Thisweek,welllookathowtoaccessthetoolsandabriefdescriptionofthewaysyoumightusesome ofthem.ThenextfewWeeklyTeachingNoteswillhighlightsomeofthewaysyoucanuseGoogleApps tosupportmakestudentcollaboration,makingitevenmoreeffective.Inthespringsemester,joinyour colleaguesforsomeworkshopsattheCenterforTeachingandLearning,inwhichfacultymemberswill demonstratethewaystheyhaveputGoogleAppstouse. First,howdoyouaccessGoogleApps?Logintotheportalathttp://my.nyit.edu,andlookatthemenu ontheleftsideofthescreen.Atthebottomofthelist,youwillfindlinkstoNYITAppsCalendar,NYIT AppsDocs,andNYITAppsSites.Eachofthesetoolscanbeusedpublically,sotheworldcansee them,orprivately,withaccessrestrictedtowhomeveryoudesignate.Youcangivepeopleviewonly access,oryoucangrantthemeditingprivileges. GoogleCalendarletsyoucreatemultiplecalendars.Youcancreateoneforeachcourseyouteach,and putclassmeetings,readings,andassignmentduedatesonit.Studentscansubscribetothecalendars foreachoftheircourseswhenyoumakeachangetothecoursecalendar,itwillautomaticallyappear inthestudentsaccounts.SincestudentemailatNYITishostedbyGmail,studentscanaccessthe GoogleAppscalendarwhenevertheychecktheiremail. GoogleDocsactuallyincludesseveraldifferenttools:awordprocessor,aspreadsheet,presentation software,aforms/surveygeneratorthatdepositsdatadirectlyintoaspreadsheet,andadrawingtool. Youcancreateacollectionofvariousdocumentsandsharethecollectionwithaclass.Anydocument addedtothatcollectionisalsoshared,automatically.GoogledocshavesomespecialWeb2.0features studentsalreadymightbeusingoutsideschool:studentsworkingonadocumentorapresentationcan editsimultaneouslyandcanuseachatwindowononesideofthescreentotalkaboutwhattheyre doing.Iftheyneedtoworkasynchronously,theycanleavecommentsforoneanotherinaFacebook stylethreadeddisplay.Youcantrackchangestothedocument,whichallowsyoutoseewhodidwhat andalsoallowsyoutorollbacktoapreviousversion.

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GoogleSitesprovidesasimpleinterfacetobuildawebsite,andhasalargenumberoftemplatestoget youandyourstudentsstarted.Sitescanbeusedtoorganizeinformationforacourse,aproject,or anythinginbetween.Theycanbeusedasrepositoriesfordocuments,linkstoresources,orasa collaborativecreativespaceinwhichstudentsbuildaproject.AswithGoogleDocs,youcantrack changestothesite,andholdstudentsaccountablefortheirindividualcontributions. Help! AllGoogleAppsincludecomprehensivehelppages.Atthetoprightcornerofthewindow,clickthegear shapedicon.Themenuwillallowyoutochangeyoursettings(preferences),andwillalsodirectyouto thehelppages,whicharebothindexedandsearchable.Foradditionaltechnicalsupport,pleasecontact ServiceCentralatservicecentral@nyit.edu. Inthecomingweeks,wewillgointomoredetailabouthowyoucanuseeachofthesetoolstoenhance studentengagementandlearninginyourcourses.Tofollowuponanyoftheseideas,pleasecontactme atfglazer@nyit.edu. Submittedby: FrancineGlazer,PhD AssistantProvostandDirector,CenterforTeachingandLearning NewYorkInstituteofTechnology http://www.nyit.edu/ctl

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MoreonStudentCollaborationandGoogleApps
ManyschoolsintheUSandaroundtheworldareusingGoogleAppsforEducationtosupportstudent learningandprovideopportunitiesforstudentengagementandcollaboration. Youmightask:Whatsinitforme?Asimpleansweris: 1) 2) Youmightalsoask:Whatsinitformystudents?Asimpleansweris: 1) 2) 3) Youhaveprobablyreadorheardtheterm"cloudcomputing"or"workinginthecloud"orsomesuch phrasewithcloudinit.Forthoseunsureofthisterm,itisreallyjustametaphorforputtingthestuff youcreatedocuments,orspreadsheets,orcalendars,orwebsitesonaserversomewherein "Googleland"sothatyouandotherscanaccessitwheneveryouareontheInternet. Thisisactuallyafairlystraightforwardconcept,buttheimplicationsareprofound.Wenolongerneedto rememberaflashdrivewiththepresentationwewanttouse,nolongerneedtolugthelaptoptoa classroomthatalreadyhasacomputerinit,andnolongerneedtoworryaboutshowinguptoclasson theothersideofcampusonlytorealizeweforgotournotesfortheclass. IhavebeenusingGoogleAppswithmyclassesforabout3yearsnow.Initially,Iusedmypersonal Googleaccountandnow,supportedbyNYIT,IuseGoogleAppsforEducation.IfindthatIteach differentlyandmystudentsaremoreengagedintheclass. Sharingclassmaterialsiseasy GoogleSites.Facultycancreatebasicwebsitesfortheirclassestoserveas"homebase."Formanyof myfacetofaceclasses,Isetupaclasssitewithonepageforthesyllabus,oneforalistofblogsitesthe studentshavecreated,athirdforclassannouncements,andafilecabinetpagetohousemyvideo lecturesandaccompanyingPowerPointslides.Thisallowsstudentstoaccesscoursematerialanytime theycangetontheInternet.Ihavealsofounditusefultouseduringclasstoreferbacktothesyllabus, ortobringupadocumentaboutwhichastudentmighthaveaquestion. GoogleDocs.IfyoudontwanttosetupaGoogleSite,youhaveanotheroptionthatisjustaseasy. GoogleDocsallowsyoutocreateacollection,andtagspecificfilesaspartofthecollection.Ifyou createacollectionandshareitwithyourclass,thenanydocumentyousubsequentlyaddtothe collectionwillbesharedaswell,automatically. 28 Easycollaboration:nomoremultiplecopiesofdocuments,eachoneslightlydifferent Easycollaboration:easyscheduling! Skillsthataretransferabletotheworkworld Itwillsaveyoualotoftime Itwillmakeyouaveryinterestingteacherwhousestechnologyinnovatively(studentslove GoogleAppsuserfriendlyinterface!)

Youcancreatecollectionswithincollections,analogoustocreatingsubfolders,whichgivesyoumore flexibility.Youcould,forexample,haveamastercollectionforeachclass,withsubcollectionsfor eachmajortopic.Tomakethingseveneasier,GoogleDocswillletyouuploadanentirefolderatatime, andwillautomaticallycreatecollectionsforeachsubfolder. Studentscollaborateeasilyandaremoreaccountablefortheirwork GoogleDocs.Googledocumentsallowmultipleuserstocontributetoonedocumentandcollaborate interactivelyonaproject. FortheGroupPresentationprojectinmySpeech105class,onestudentinthegroupcreatestheinitial GooglePresentationfileandsharesitwiththeothers(andwithme).Studentscanseewhathasalready beendoneandcanplantheircontributionsaccordingly.GoogleDocsallowsmetoseewhichstudent createdwhichportionofthepresentation,makingiteasiertoassignequitablegrades. GoogleCalendar.Googlecalendarfacilitatesworkprogressandsupportscreationoftimelines. Studentsworkingingroupscancreateandshareaprojectcalendar.Theycanestablishdeadlinesfor stagesoftheprojectandschedulegroupmeetings.Iftheyfindithelpful,individualstudentscan configuretheircalendartosendthemtextmessageremindersinadvanceofimportantdeadlines. GoogleSites.Studentscancreatesitestoorganizetheirwork.Thesitecanprovideastructurethat makesiteasytofindtheirpresentationsandotherdocuments,linkstoresources,andthegroups calendar. Thesearejustafewexamplesofthemanythingsthatbothyouandyourstudentscandomore effectivelywithGoogleApps.Therearemanymorepossibilities,someofwhichwehaveyettothinkof. Theeasiestwaytogetstarted,however,istosignintotheNYITportal,clickononeofthenewGoogle Applinksontheleft,andbegintoexperiment. Contributor: DanQuigley,PhD AssociateProfessor,English NewYorkInstituteofTechnology dquigley@nyit.edu Yourfeedback,suggestions,andoriginalideasarealwayswelcome!Tofollowuponanyoftheseideas, pleasecontactmeatfglazer@nyit.edu. Submittedby: FrancineGlazer,PhD AssistantProvostandDirector,CenterforTeachingandLearning NewYorkInstituteofTechnology http://www.nyit.edu/ctl

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Whichtool?...Blackboard?GoogleApps?Somethingelse?
FourfacultymembersatNYITwithexpertiseinBlackboard(Bb)andGoogleAppssharedsomestrategies theyusetoincreasestudentengagementandlearningandansweredquestionsfromtheother participantsabouthowtoachievecertainpedagogicalgoalsusingthesetools.Here,Isharesomeofthe ideasgeneratedattheworkshop.ThankstoDanQuigley,CollegeofArtsandSciences,andtoKate OHara,StanSilverman,andMikeUttendorfer,allintheSchoolofEducation,forsharingtheir experiences. OurpanelistspreferGoogleAppsasatoolforfacilitatinggroupwork.Doyouwantyourstudentsto writeapaperorcreateapresentationcollaboratively?Editoneanotherswriting?Collectandanalyze data?GoogleSitesorGoogleDocumentscanbeusedtoorganizecontributionsfrommultiplestudents, muchasyoumightusethewikitoolinBlackboard.GoogleDocsincludesawordprocessor,a presentationtool,aspreadsheet,andaformgeneratorthatdepositsinformationintoaspreadsheet. GoogleFormsareespeciallyversatilethefourfacultyonthepanelusethetoolforattendance,for gatheringinformationinoneplace(e.g.,students'choiceoftopicsforpapers),forquizzesand anonymoussurveys,andasawayforstudentstogettoknowoneanother.Thislasttechniqueis employedbyStanSilverman,whoasksstudentstoansweraseriesofquestionsaboutthemselves.All thestudentscanvieweachothers'responsesonthespreadsheet,andStanusestheirresponsesto selectedquestionsinthesurveyasawaytosorthisstudentsintogroups. Blackboarddoeshavetoolsforgroups,andmanyofthosetoolscanlinkdirectlytothegradecenter. However,asMikeUttendorferpointedout,ifstudentsaresharingdocumentsbackandforththegroups toolinBbwillresultinmultiplecopiesofadocumentatdifferentstagesofcompletion,whileGoogle Appswillmaintainasingledocument,withahistoryofchangesandtheabilitytoreverttoanearlier version. OneinnovativeideaforintegratingthetwosuitesoftoolsistoembedtheGoogledocuments,drawings, forms,etc.onacontentpageinBb.KateOHara,whosharedthisidea,saiditmakestheBbpagesmore visuallyappealingtostudents,andthestudentscanuseGoogleAppsfromwithintheBbenvironment. Thisstrategyhastheaddedadvantageofgivingthestudentawidervarietyoftoolstouse,and familiaritywithGoogleAppsgivesthemaskilltheycanuseinaprofessionalsetting. Oneoftherecurringthemesduringtheworkshopwashowtoorganizecoursematerials.Mike UttendorferdoesthiswithinBbbycreatingacontentpageforeachweek/unitofthecourse,andgiving thatpageaconsistentstructureeachweek.Thepagestartswithaweekly'roadmap'thatincludesthe learningobjectives,activities,resources,andapproximatetimerequiredtocompleteeachtask.Folders onthepagekeepresourcematerialsandactivitiesgroupedtogether,andeachunitendswithaself assessmentforthestudents,sotheycangaugetheirmasteryofthematerial.Frequentuseof anonymoussurveyshelpsMikegatherfeedbackaboutthecoursedesignandanydifficultiesthe studentsmightbehavingwiththematerial.

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Ifapictureisworthathousandwords,thenavideoisworthanessay.Severalofthefacultyuseshort screencaststogivestudentsatourofthevirtualenvironment,directionsonhowtodothings,feedback onstudentwork,andtoconveycontent.DanQuigleyaskshisstudentstouseafreescreencastingtool (twopopulartoolsareJinghttp://www.jingproject.comandScreencastOMatic http://www.screencastomatic.com)toprovidenarrationforaslidepresentation,asawaytomove studentpresentationsonline.Itisagoodideatoprovidestudentswithseveraloptionswhenusingthis approach,becausethecomputerstheyhaveathomearegoingtohavearangeofabilitywithrespectto thetechnologiestheycansupport. Athirdthreadtotheconversationwassynchronousactivities.Studentslearnbestwithablendof asynchronousandsynchronousactivitiesregardlessofwhetherthesynchronousactivitiesoccuronline orinpersonespeciallywhenthelearningthathappensinonevenueisreinforcedintheother.Wehad awiderangingdiscussionofdifferenttoolsthatareavailable,eachofwhichhasdifferentstrengthsand limitations.DanQuigleymadeanexcellentpoint:whenstartingout,keepyour(andyourstudents') expectationsrealistic.Ifyouwanttoexperimentwithasynchronousonlineformatlikeawebinar,it mightbebesttodosoasanenhancementtoacoursethatmeetsinpersonthatwayifthetechnology doesn'tworkasadvertised,youhavetheregularclassmeetingasabackup. Asyoucansee,therearelotsofchoicesoutthere.Ultimately,thebestchoiceistheonethatallowsyou toansweryestothesequestions: Doesthistoolmeasurablyimproveteachingandlearning? Willthistoolhelpmystudentsbecomemoreengagedwiththecoursematerial? Doesthistoolmakemyworkorthatofmystudentseasierandmoreefficient? IsthistoolbetterenoughthanwhatImcurrentlyusingtojustifythetimeandeffortrequired tolearnit? Yourfeedback,suggestions,andoriginalideasarealwayswelcome!Tofollowuponanyoftheseideas, pleasecontactmeatfglazer@nyit.edu. Submittedby: FrancineGlazer,PhD AssistantProvostandDirector,CenterforTeachingandLearning NewYorkInstituteofTechnology http://www.nyit.edu/ctl

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Gamification

Figure1:bluewolf.com

TheresanintriguingnewtheoryoflearningouttherecalledGAMIFICATION.Whilethismaysoundlike educationalgaming,actuallyitisnot.Gamificationsuggeststhatourstudents(atleastthedigitalnatives amongthem)areusedtothekindofincentivestructuresthatarebuiltintodigitalgames.Ifthatsthe case,whycantweincorporatesimilarincentivestructuresintohowweteach?Thatsthequestionthat gamificationscholarsareexploringandyoudontevenneedtechnologytodoit.Thetheoryisreally aboutmotivationandengagement. Inunderstandinggamification,ithelpstothinkaboutyourownexperiencewithgames.Haveyou rescuedtheprincess?DoyouhaveafarminFarmville?HaveyoueverventuredintoWorldofWarcraft? Ifyoudo,thinkabouthowthesegamesmotivateengagement. Someexamplesofhowtoincorporategamificationintoinstruction: Turnassignmentsintoselfpacedchallengesorquests.Youcangivestudentsseveralquestsandallow themtheoptionofchoosingwhichtopursue. Giveoutpointsorbadgesforstudentachievements.Theseneednotbeextracredit,butyoucanturn itintoacompetition,visiblyrecognizingthosethatareleadinginpoints,orincertaincategoriesor themes. Designyourassignmentsorinstructionsothattherearelevelsofachievement.Requirestudentsto passonelevelbeforemovingontothenext Relatedtotheitemabove,youcanhaveeachlevelendwithamonsterchallenge,i.e.aharder assignmentoractivitythatmaytakeseveralattemptstocompletesuccessfully Thinkaboutstructuringgroupassignmentssimilarlytolargemultiplayergames.Groups,forexample, canbechosenbasedonabilities(orpoints).

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Theresagreatoverview(SevenThingsYouNeedtoKnowaboutGamification)fromEDUCAUSE, accessibleherehttp://www.educause.edu/Resources/7ThingsYouShouldKnowAboutGamif/233416 Ifyouwanttoknowevenmore,THEGAMIFICATIONOFLEARNINGANDINSTRUCTION:Gamebased MethodsandStrategiesforTrainingandEducationbyKarlLapp(Pfeiffer,2012)isrecentbookthat providessomegreatideas. Submittedby LauraCruz Director,CoulterFacultyCommons WesternCarolinaUniversity www.wcu.edu/facctr

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TheClaremontDialog
TheClaremontDialoghelpsstudentsreflectontheircurricularexperience,whetherassignment,activity, reading,orservice.Manyreflectionmodels,suchastheDEAL(Describe,Examine,andArticulate Learning)ModelforCriticalReflectionandKolbsExperientialLearningCycle,askstudentstoconsider andmakesenseoftheirexperiences.Studentsstarttheirreflectivejourneybydescribing,forexample,a fieldstudy,bothobjectivelyandpersonally.Duringadialog,participatingstudentsmaydojustthis reflectandsharewithagroupofpeerswithoutjudgmentorcommentontheirfieldstudywork.If studentsdonotwishtoshare,theymaypasstheirturnaroundthecircle. TheClaremontDialogisanexampleofcontemplativepedagogy,anincreasinglyhottopicinhigher education.TheCenterforContemplativeMindinSocietyexploresanumberofpracticesthatdrawupon mindfulnessandreflectiontechniquesfrombothreligiousandseculartraditions,suchasthepractice describedhere.TheClaremontDialogtakesadvantageofsomeconventionaldiscussiontoolssuchas agendasandclearobjectivestofacilitatedynamicandfocusedlearning.However,itisstructuredto counteractsomeoftheissuessometimesassociatedwithclassroomdiscussions,suchasgivingample opportunityforquietorshystudentstovoicetheiropinions. Ingeneral,theClaremontDialogdrawsfromquestionssuchas,Howdoes___feel?,Whatwasyour experiencewith___?,andWhatdidIlearnaboutmyselffrom___?Thedialogisalsoconsidered confidential,andthereisnojudgmenteitherduringoraftertheexperience.Itallowsforcriticalself reflectioninasupportivegroupenvironment. Inpractice,theclass: Formsacircle Takesamomentofsilence/meditation Theleader/instructor(whoispartofthecircle),explainstherulesfortheClaremontDialogas wellastheobjectivesofthisparticulardialog(perhapsincludingaguidingquestion) Theleadershareshis/herexperienceorresponsetotheguidingquestion Studentsaregivenopportunitytoparticipatebysharingtheirexperiencesasthedialogmoves aroundthecircle Resources: http://www.contemplativemind.org/ http://educationprogram.duke.edu/uploads/assets/DEAL%20reflection%20questions.pdf http://academic.regis.edu/ed202/subsequent/kolb2.htm Submittedby: FreyaB.Kinner,InstructionalDeveloper CoulterFacultyCommons WesternCarolinaUniversity http://www.wcu.edu

PersonalizePlagiarismtoPreventitsPractice
Experienceisahardteacherbecauseshegivesthetestfirst,thelessonafterwards. 34

VernonSandersLaw,formermajorleaguebaseballplayer(PittsburghPirates) Strongemotionshelpcementanexperienceintolongtermmemory.Notconvinced?Thinkback wherewereyouwhen Thefirstmanlandedonthemoon? Aprominentpoliticalfigureinyourcountrywasshot? Youfirstlearnedoftheeventsof9/11/2001? Youcelebratedanimportantmilestone?

Wecanusethisphenomenontohelpourstudentslearncertainkeyconceptsmoredeeply.Forexample, letslookathowDeborahZarkerMiller,anassistantprofessorofEnglishatAndersonUniversity,makes plagiarismverypersonaltoherstudents. First,askyourstudentstocreateanoriginalworkthatisinsomewayrelatedtoyourcourse,andtell themtheywilleachhave60secondstopresenttheircreationtotheclass.AstudentinFoundationsof Inquirymightcreateabriefvideoorwriteashortessayelaboratingononeofthedisciplinesintroduced inthatcourse;astudentinInteriorDesignmightcreateamontageofsustainablematerials;astudentin LifeSciencesmightbuilda3dimensionalmodeltorepresentastructureinthecell;astudentin Engineeringmightcreateaschematicforanew,energyefficientvehicle. Atthenextclass,aftereachstudentpresentshisorherwork,letthestudentswanderaroundand examinethemmoreclosely.Mostlikely,youwillseearangeofcreativityandofeffortinthe projects.Tellthestudentstoidentifytheworktheyfindthemostcreativebystandingnexttoit.Some studentswillchoosetheirownwork,butotherstudentswilllikelychoosesomeoneelses. Onceeveryonehasmadeachoice,tellthestudentstocrossoutthenameofthepersonwhocreated theprojecttheyarestandingby,andtowriteintheirownnamesinstead.Informthemthatyouwillgive credittothestudent(s)whohaveidentifiedthatworkasmostcreative,nottothestudentwho producedit.Waitforyourannouncementtosinkin,andthenaskifthereareanyquestions.Asthe discussionevolves,thestudentswillbegintorealizetheconnectionbetweenwhathasjusthappened andplagiarism.Perhapsexperiencingplagiarismfromtheothersidewillmakeadeeper,longerlasting impact. Resources: Ambrose,S.A.,Bridges,M.W.,DiPietro,M.,Lovett,M.C.,andNorman,M.K.(2010).HowLearning Works:SevenResearchBasedPrinciplesforSmartTeaching(TheJosseyBassHigherandAdult EducationSeries).JosseyBass,1edition. Bransford,J.D.,Brown,A.L.,andCocking,R.R.(2000).HowPeopleLearn:Brain,Mind,Experience, andSchool:ExpandedEdition.NationalAcademiesPress,2edition. Miller,DeborahZarker.(2012).ALessoninAcademicIntegrityasStudentsFeeltheInjusticeof Plagiarism.FacultyFocus.Retrieved4/24/2012from http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/teachingandlearning/alessoninacademicintegrityas 35

studentsfeeltheinjusticeofplagiarism/ Zull,J.E.(2002).TheArtofChangingtheBrain:EnrichingthePracticeofTeachingbyExploringthe BiologyofLearning.StylusPublishing,1edition. Tofollowuponanyoftheseideas,pleasecontactmeatfglazer@nyit.edu.Theactivitycreatedby DeborahZarkerMillerwasusedwithpermission. Submittedby: FrancineGlazer,PhD AssistantProvostandDirector,CenterforTeachingandLearning NewYorkInstituteofTechnology http://www.nyit.edu/ctl

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Storytelling,Creativity,andClassroomManagement
Aperennialproblemformanyfacultymembersisstudentsarrivinglatetoclass.Ivefoundawayto encouragestudentstoarriveontime,whileexercisingtheircreativity. Asoneofthepreliminaryexercisesincreatingananimation,Iaskthestudentstofirstreadaseriesof shortstoriesandthenwriteafactualaccountofsomethingthattheyhaveexperiencedthathasmade animpactonthem.Theyaretheninstructedtosettheirwrittenstoryasideand"perform"thestoryasa storyteller.Thisisastandardexercisecommonlyusedinmanyclassesthatinvolvecreativeexpression. Basedonthisidea,Ihavedevelopedastorytellingassignmentindealingwithstudentsthatcometo classlate.Whenastudentcomesinaftertheclassstarts,allclassactivitystopsandthetardystudentis requiredtotellthestoryofwhyheorsheislate.Theycannot,however,tellthetruth!Instead,they mustinventanddeliverastoryonthespotthatmakestheclassrespondasanaudience.Thestorymust beentertaining,fantastic,emotional,orinanyotherway,engaging.Theclassthenvotesbyshowinga thumbsuporathumbsdown.Ifthevotegoesinthestudent'sfavor,thentheywillsimplybemarked late. Iftheydonotsucceedintheireffortsthentheyaremarkedasunprepared.Thisexercisehasforcedall thestudentstobepreparedwithatleastonegoodstoryandhascompletelyeliminatedtheissueof lateness. TheexercisegetsevenbetterifIameverlatetoclass,sincetherulealsoappliestome.Thefirsttime thatIannouncedthispolicy,theinevitablehappened.HeavytrafficmademelatetothenextclassbutI hadmystoryreadytogoandthankfullydidgetathumbsup. Contributor: Prof.PeterVoci MFADirector/FineArtsChair NewYorkInstituteofTechnology Yourfeedback,suggestions,andoriginalideasarealwayswelcome!Tofollowuponanyoftheseideas, pleasecontactmeatfglazer@nyit.edu. Submittedby: FrancineGlazer,PhD AssistantProvostandDirector,CenterforTeachingandLearning NewYorkInstituteofTechnology http://www.nyit.edu/ctl

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ShortVideoGuidesforStudentsonEffectiveStudyStrategies
Collegestudentsfrequentlywastetimeusingineffectivestudystrategiesbecausetheyareunawareof whichstrategiesareeffectiveordontretainthesuggestionsforeffectivestudyprovidedbytheir instructors.StephenChew,acognitivepsychologistatSamfordUniversity,createdaseriesof5short YouTubevideosthatdescribeeffectivestudystrategiesandexplainwhythesestrategiesproduce learningthatlasts. Ineachvideo,Chewprovidescontextanddefinestermssothataninstructorcandirectstudentstoan individualvideoforgoodadviceonstudying.However,becauseeachvideobuildsonconcepts explainedindetailinearliervideos,thegreatestbenefitwillbegainedbyaskingstudentstoviewallof thevideosinsequence.Thefollowingannotatedguidetothefivevideosisbasedondescriptions providedbyStephenChew. VideoGuide:HowtoStudyLongandHardandStillFailorHowtoGettheMostOutofStudying Theoverallthemeofthevideoscommunicatestwoimportantideas.First,studentswhouseineffective orinefficientwaysofstudyingwilldiscoverthattheystudylongandhardandstillfail.Second,students whouseeffectivestrategieswillgetthemostlearningoutoftheirstudytimeandwillbemorelikelyto succeed. Video1:BeliefsThatMakeYouFailOrSucceed Chewexaminescommonmistakenbeliefsstudentsoftenpossessthatunderminetheirlearning.The videotriestocorrectthosemisconceptionswithaccuratebeliefsaboutlearning. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RH95h36NChI Video2:WhatStudentsShouldUnderstandAboutHowPeopleLearn Chewintroducesasimplebutpowerfultheoryofmemory,LevelsofProcessing,thatexplainswhysome strategiesaremorebeneficialthanothersforlearning.ApplicationoftheLevelsofProcessingmodel whenselectingstudystrategiescanhelpstudentsimprovetheirstudy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9O7y7XEC66M Video3:CognitivePrinciplesforOptimizingLearning Chewoperationalizestheconceptoflevelofprocessingintofourprinciplesthatstudentscanuseto developeffectivestudystrategies. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xeHh5DnCIw Video4:PuttingthePrinciplesforOptimizingLearningintoPractice Chewappliestheprinciplesofdeepprocessingtocommonstudysituations.Chewdescribesthe conditionsinwhichthestudentsmethodfortakingnotesinclassorhighlightingtextwhilereading correspondstoeithershallowordeepprocessing,withpredictableconsequencesforqualityoflearning. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9GrOxhYZdQ Video5:IBlewtheExam,NowWhat? Chewaddresseswhatstudentsshouldandshouldnotdowhentheyearnabadgradeonanexam. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVRiMkdRsU ThefirstfourvideosarebasedonapresentationStephenChewmakestofreshmenatSamford,which hedescribedinapublicationoftheAssociationforPsychologicalScienceObserver(2010). 38

Chew,S.L.(2010).Improvingstudentperformancebychallengingstudentmisconceptionsabout learning.Observer,3(4). AvailableatthefollowingURL: http://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/publications/observer/2010/april10/improving classroomperformancebychallengingstudentmisconceptionsaboutlearning.html Submittedby: ClaudiaJ.Stanny,Ph.D.,Director CenterforUniversityTeaching,Learning,andAssessment UniversityofWestFlorida uwf.edu/cutla/

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TEDResources
In the Fall of 2008 I distributed a TLC called TED Resources about a variety of speeches freely available online under a Creative Commons license. Please revisit the TED Talks website! In the last 4 years the TED Resources have expanded to over 1100 speeches on a very wide range of topics. You can easily locate the most appropriate speech for your needs by browsing for topic, key word, presenter, or length of speech (from 3 to 18 minutes). The site has an impressive list of presenters, including Bill Gates, Bill Clinton, anthropologist Jane Goodall, journalist Malcolm Gladwell, molecular scientist Paul Rothemund, educator Salman Khan, Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, and many Noble Prize winners. There are translations available in up to 84 languages. As an added bonus, the Ted Resources website also contains a searchable database of over 1400 quotes from the presentations. Visit often! Im confident the TED website will continue to expand with new, interesting, and up-to-date resources.

TED talks Themes Translations Quotes

http://www.ted.com/talks http://www.ted.com/themes http://www.ted.com/OpenTranslationProject http://www.ted.com/quotes

Submitted by Debi Griffin, Manager Faculty Development Center Bellarmine University

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StudentEngagementTechnique:SilentDiscussion
Rationale: Thiswellestablishedyetunderutilizedtechniqueisoneofmyfavoritesbecauseitsupportscritical thinking,activeengagement,andsocial,dialogiclearning.Fromabrainbasededucationperspective,it alsostimulatesareasofthebrainthatoralcommunicationdoesnot,theoreticallyencouragingthe formationofimportantneuralpathways.Finally,ithelpsbuildclassroomcommunitybecauseitisa communicationequalizer,permittingmanyofthequieterstudentsastrongervoice. Procedure: 1. Askeachstudenttowritearesponsetoaprompt. 2. Havestudentsformsmall,circulargroups. 3. Askeachstudenttopassherresponsetotherightandthenreadandwritebacktotheresponse thatispassedtoher. 4. Afterstudentshavehadtimetorespond,askthemtoonceagainpasstheirpaperstotheright sothattheyeachreceiveanewsilentdiscussionthattheywillreadandrespondto.Theyshould beengaginginthewholeconversation,notjusttheoriginalprompt. 5. Continuethisprocesssothateachpaperispassedtwoormorecyclesaroundthecircle. 6. Allowstudentstoconverseinsmallgroupsbeforetransitioningtoawholeclassdiscussionor concludingtheexercise. Troubleshooting: Studentsinitiallyresistthisexercise,butbytheendofthediscussion,theyareusually energeticallyengaged.Irequirethatthesilentpartofthediscussionbesilent(exceptfor momentsofappreciativelaughterasstudentsviewtheirpeersresponsestotheirideas).Once learned,itisasimpleprocess,butstepbystepinstructionsareessentialthefirsttimeout.
AdaptedbyKiraTrainor AssistantProfessorofEnglish CommunityCollegeofRhodeIsland

Submittedby: KarenGriscom AssistantProfessorofEnglish Coordinator,CenterforInnovativeTeaching,Learning,andAssessment CommunityCollegeofRhodeIsland

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GotaMinuteforMyWorldview?
Bysettingasidetimeforstudentstogettoknoweachotherintheearlyweeksofthecourse,professors underscoretheimportanceoftheinitialstudenttostudentinterchanges,acknowledgethevalueofthe studentviewpointsandthecontributionsofeachmemberoftheclass,andopenthewayforstudentsto begintovalueotherstudentsasresourcesallqualitiesofaworkingcommunity(DuffyandJones 1995,p.129). Inthisweeksteachingmessage,Ioffertwosuggestionsforhelpingstudentsbecomemoreawareof theirownpositionalitiesandgrowthwithinthecontextofyourcourse.Intheclassroom,itisafools errandtobeginthesemesterwithoutclearlydefiningwhatitiswewantourstudentstolearn.Oncewe articulateourlearningobjectivesanddefinewhatourstudentsshouldbeabletoknowanddobythe endoftheterm,wecandevelopacomprehensiveassessmentplanthatteststheirattainmentofthese objectivesatspecificpointsduringthesemester.Buttofocussolelyonstudentscontentmastery wouldbetodenyasignificantpartoftheirdevelopmentascompletebeings.Ametagoalofourworkin highereducationmightbetohelpstudentsmovealongtheirownpathsofintellectualdevelopmentto anendpointneitherofuscanyetsee.Ifthisisthecase,anadditionalsetofaffectiveassessmentscan makethisgrowthapparenttostudents. Considerbeginningthesemesterwithashortactivitythathelpsstudentstakestockofhowtheir personalandsocialidentitiesmightinfluencetheirperspectivesoncoursetopics.BrookfieldandPreskill (2005,p.158159)describeanactivitythattheycallStandpointStatements,whichcanbeused effectivelyasamoreadvancedicebreakerthathelpsstudentstakestockofwheretheystandon variousissuesvisvistheirpeersintheclass.Tocompletethisactivity,studentsbeginbywritingdown afewdemographicfactsaboutthemselves(e.g.race/ethnicity,religiousidentity,socioeconomic background,etc.).Studentsthenbrainstormabouthowthesefeaturesoftheiridentityshapetheway theyviewtheworld.Youmightencouragethemtothinkevenmorespecificallyabouthowitwillshape theirperceptionsofthecoursecontent.Forexample,astudentinananthropologycoursemightsay thathisresistancetostudyingevolutionislinkedtohisupbringingasaChristian. WhileBrookfieldandPreskillincludeathirdwrittencomponentinthisexercise,atthispointI recommendhavingstudentsmoveintoasmallgroupdiscussionofwhattheyhavewritten.Inaddition tohelpingstudentsgettoknowoneanother,thisactivityhastheadditionalbenefitofcreatinga classroomclimateinwhichsharingpersonalperspectivesisvalued.Permittingpersonalexperienceto bediscussedinconcertwithmoretheoreticalperspectivesallowsstudentstoclaimaknowledgebase fromwhichtheycanspeak(hooks,1994,p.148).Thisparticularlyimportantforstudentswhomayfeel alienatedfromthenormsoftraditionalacademicculture(i.e.studentsofcolor,firstgeneration students,etc.). Theendofthesemesteristhetimewhenwetypicallyevaluatehowfarourstudentshaveprogressedin termsofmasteringthecoursecontent.However,thiscanalsobeatimeforstudentstoselfassesstheir personaldevelopment.Considerusingaclosingassignmentthatencouragesstudentstoarticulatehow theyhavebeenchangedbytheirexperiencesinyourcourse.ThiscouldbedoneasaMinutePaper (Angelo&Cross,1993)orasalettertothemselvesthatyouwillcollectandmailtotheminaspecified 42

numberofweeksormonths.IfyouusedtheStandpointStatementactivityatthebeginningofthe semester,youmightencouragestudentstothinkspecificallyabouthowtheiridentitiesinfluencedtheir receptionofcoursematerial.Youmightalsoaskwhetherornottheirperspectivesontheworldwe transformedasaresultofhavingtakenthiscourseand,ifso,how(seeMezirow1981formoreon perspectivetransformation). Howeveryouultimatelychoosetoapproachthis,bookendingyourcoursewithreflectiveactivitiesthat promptstudentstothinkaboutwhotheyareandtheirrelationshiptoyourcoursewillturnamereclass intoameaningfullearningexperience.Thesetaskshelpthestudenttoseehowhisorheridentities shapethewaysinwhichheorsheperceivesthecontentofyourcourseatthebeginningofthesemester and,inturn,howhisorherperceptionoftheworldhasbeenfurtherrefinedbythecoursecontentat thesemestersend. WorksCited Angelo,T.A.,&Cross,K.P.(1993).ClassroomAssessmentTechniques:Ahandbookforcollegeteachers (2ndEditioned.).SanFrancisco,CA:JosseyBass. Brookfield,S.D.,&Preskill,S.(2005).DiscussionasaWayofTeaching:ToolsandTechniquesfor DemocraticClassrooms.SanFrancisco,CA:JosseyBass. Duffy,D.K.,&Jones,J.W.(1995).TeachingWithintheRhythmsofhteSemester.SanFrancisco,CA: JosseyBass. hooks,b.(1994).TeachingtoTransgress:EducationasthePracticeofFreedom.NewYork,NY: Routledge. Mezirow,J.(1981).ACriticalTheoryofAdultLearningandEducation.AdultEducationQuarterly,32,3 24. LaurenMillerGriffith,Ph.D. FacultyCenterforInnovativeTeaching CentralMichiganUniversity

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APrimeronCriticalThinking
CriticalThinking: Awellcultivatedcriticalthinker: a. raisesvitalquestionsandproblems,formulatingthemclearlyandprecisely; b. gathersandassessesrelevantinformation,andeffectivelyinterpretsit; c. comestowellreasonedconclusionsandsolutions,testingthemagainstrelevantcriteria andstandards; d. thinksopenmindedlywithinalternativesystemsofthought,recognizingandassessing, asneedbe,theirassumptions,implications,andpracticalconsequences;and e. communicateseffectivelywithothersinfiguringoutsolutionstocomplexproblems. f. Criticalthinkingis,selfdirected,selfdisciplined,selfmonitored,andselfcorrective thinking.Itentailseffectivecommunicationandproblemsolvingabilities(Paul&Elder, 2002,p.15). Facione(2004)describedcognitiveskillsandaffectivedispositionsassociatedwithcritical thinking.Theseinclude:

Interpretation; Analysis

Open-minded

SelfRegulation

Evaluation

Confident in reasoning

Analytical; Judicious

Explanation

Inference

Truth seeking

Systematic inquisitive

CriticalThinkingandtheLearningEnvironment: a.Formulatediscussionsandquestionstoimproveadultlearnerscriticalthinkingskills: Clarity Couldyouelaboratefurther? Couldyougivemeanexample? Accuracy Howcouldwefindoutifthatistrue? Howcouldweverifyortestthat? Precision Couldyougivememoredetails? Couldyoubemoreexact? 44

Relevance Howdoesthatrelatetotheproblem? Howdoesthathelpuswiththeissue? Depth Whatfactorsmakethisadifficultproblem? Whataresomeofthecomplexitiesofthisquestion? Breadth Doweneedtolookatthisfromanotherperspective? Doweneedtoconsideranotherpointofview? Logic Doesallthismakesensetogether? Doeswhatyousayfollowfromtheevidence? Significance Isthisthecentralideatofocuson? Whichofthesefactsaremostimportant? Fairness DoIhaveanyvestedinterestinthisissue? AmIsympatheticallyrepresentingtheviewpointsofothers? (Paul&Elder,2006). b.Planauthentictaskswhichaddressimportantissuesorproblems. c.Replicatereallifesituationswithinthediscipline. d.Restructurelearningtopromotehigherlevelthinking(SeeBloomstaxonomy). e.Promoteactivelearningbyplanninginductiveteachinglearningmethodssuchas: GuidedInquiry; Problembased; Projectbased;and Casebaselearning.

Resources:Svinicki&McKeachie,2011;Huba&Freed,2000;Paul&Elder,2006;Prince&Felder,2006. Submittedby ValerieLopes,PhD SenecaCollege,Canada Professor,CentreforAcademicExcellence

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WiththeCommunity,NotJustInIt
Itusuallytakesmorethanthreeweekstoprepareagoodimpromptuspeech. MarkTwain Communityengagement,gainingascendancyinrecentyearsforsomedisciplines,bringsgreatpromise forstudentsandteachersasamemorableandmeaningfulapproachtoeducation.Aburgeoning literaturecharacterizesmanyaspectsofthispedagogy,butanumberofclearprincipleshelpensurea qualitycommunitybasedlearningexperienceforallparticipants. validityofthetext Bythinkingofthecommunityasatext,specificallyselectedformaximumimpactintheclassroomas wellasbeyondit,selectionofacommunitysiteorpartnerparallelstheagonizingselectionofa textbook.Withnoperfecttextoutthere,teachersmustchoosealocationororganizationfor studentsthatwillhelpthemtestoutthetheoriestheylearnintheclassroom,balancingthe shortcomingsandthepositiveattributesofthesource.Instructorsshouldconsiderthedifficultyofthe communityagencyastext,howeasilyitcanbereadandunderstoodbystudents,andhowpoisedfor highlighting,underlining,andnotetakingtheagencyanditsstaff,volunteers,andclientsmightbe. reciprocity Fromtheperspectiveofthefaculty,onewaytoguaranteeasuccessfulcollaborationwithstudentsand communitypartnersistoconsiderthereciprocityofsuchanundertakingforallpartiesconcerned. Communityengagedactivitythusrepresentsnotjustaonewaystreet,withstudentsandfaculty droppingintothecommunity,withlittlecareorconcernaboutthetrueneeds,thesuccessofsome approachesoverothers,andtheabilitytohearandunderstandwhathappenswhenthevitalenergyof studentsfindsitswayintothecity.Therecanbenothingmoredeeplysatisfyingthanforastudentto knowthetaskstheyhaveundertakenreallydomatteranddomakeadifferenceforothers.Havingthat goodfeelingintheendrequiresmuchlistening,anopennesstoothers,andadeepconnectiontothe communitybythefacultymember. initforthelongterm Bylivinginaplace,onebeginstoknowitmoredeeplyandthuscomprehendtheneedsofits constituents,organizations,andcommunityasawhole.Communitybasedworkcallsforfacultyto leavetheiroffices,classrooms,andstudios,andbeinthecityonitsstreets,patronizingitsretail establishmentsandservices,lettingitscultureseepintothefacultylife.Bylisteningcloselyand examiningwherethecommunitydoesnotquitecometogetherorwheretheremightbefrictionor wherethereexistsaneedtobemetthesecracksandfissuresprovidegoldenopportunitiesforfaculty, students,andinstitutionstotrulybeofbenefittotheplacesinwhichtheysit.Alongtermattitudeofa facultymemberthinkingwiththecommunityideallymakespossiblearecognitionofanauthentic approachthatwillresultintransformative,positivechange.

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thesyllabusandlearninggoals Becauseanycommunityengagedprojectrequiresthoughtfularticulationofresponsibilitiesand connectiontotheeducationalpurposesofactivities,thesyllabusprovidestheplaceforthecritically importantdocumentationofexpectationsforfaculty,student,andpartner.Takingthetimetowork withthecommunitysiteoragencytohelpthemseethelearninggoalsofthecourseandthewaythat thecommunityprojecttiesinwiththerestofthematerialfromclassmakesahugedifferencein understandingwiththestaff,volunteer,oragencywithwhomorwherethestudentandfacultymay work.Inhavingtheseconversationsbeforethesemestercommencesandintalkingthemthrough, facultyhelpavoidchallengesandcircumstancesforstudents,thefacultymemberthemselves,andthe communitypartnerthroughoutthesemesterandbeyond. resource Hatcher,JulieA.andBobBringle,eds.(2011)UnderstandingServiceLearningandCommunity Engagement:CrossingBoundariesthroughResearch.InternationalAssociationforResearchonService LearningandCommunityEngagement. Submittedby PatrickLeeLucas AssociateProfessor FacultyTeaching&LearningCommons UniversityofNorthCarolinaatGreensboro

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DevelopingStudentReadingCapacity
Onequestionthatoftencomesupindiscussionduringourvariouscommunitiesofpracticesconcerns reading,bothgettingthestudentstodothereadingsandhelpingstudentsdevelopamorecriticaleye. BelowaresomesuggestionssharedbyfacultyatLaurierandelsewhere. TalkaboutwhatitmeanstobeaXinyourdiscipline(e.g.,ageographer).Howdoesageographerthink, problemsolve,read,write,andsoon?Whatquestionsdotheyimplicitlyaskthemselveswhen approachingaparticulartext?Whatisthediscourseofthediscipline?Howcanwemakemore transparentandaccessibletoourstudents,whatcomesnaturallytousasacademics? Developanactivityassociatedwiththereading(s)thatfeedsintoclassroomdiscussion(oran assignment).Forexample,inoneofourfirstyearReligionandCulturecoursesEvilandItsSymbols theprofessorasksherstudentstoidentifyashortpassageorquotefromthereadingthatissalientto them,andtowriteashortparagraphidentifyingwhythispassageorquotespoketothemandhowit connectstothetopicunderstudy.Studentshandtheirworkin24hoursbeforeclass.Theirwork becomesthefoundationfordiscussioninthenextclassmeeting.Aportionofthestudents'totalgradeis assignedtothesesubmissions. Modelcriticalreadingintheclassroom.IliketheapproachcreatedbyProfessorShelaghCrooksofSt. Mary'sUniversity(Canada).Inherclass,sheprovidesstudentswithashortreading(itcouldbeonefrom theassignedreadinglist)and,ingroups,asksthemtoworkthroughthefollowingquestions.These questionsaretakenupcollectively.Thisexerciseisrepeatedseveraltimesoveranumberofclasses, therebybuildingstudentcapacityandconfidencetoreadwithamorecriticaleye.Disciplinespecific questionscouldbeaddedtothelistedbelowtoreflectone'sdisciplineorsubjectarea.Youcouldalso turnthisexerciseintoanassignment. Questions:(1)Whatisthetopicunderdiscussion?(2)Whatistheissueathand?(3)Whatpositiondoes theauthortake?(4)Whatevidencedoestheauthorprovide?(5)Howcredibleistheevidence? Otherconsiderations: inviteauthorsintotheclassroomviaSkypeorothertechnologytobringareadingtolife provideaworksheetforstudentstodocumenttheirthinking/discussion FavouriteResource: EngagingIdeas:TheProfessor'sGuidetoIntegratingWriting,CriticalThinking,andActiveLearninginthe Classroom(JohnBean,2011) SoTLpieceonreading: seereviewat:http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/teachingprofessorblog/anexemplarof pedagogicalscholarshiptakesonstudentreading/ Preparedby JeanetteMcDonaldandAnnaBarichello Submittedby JeanetteMcDonald WilfridLaurierUniversity(Canada)

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LearningfromConflictintheClassroom
Thestudyofconflictshouldbeviewedasabasichumanrequirementandthepracticeofconstructive conflictasanessentialsetofinterpersonalskills(WilmotandHocker,2011,p.2) Thereareseveralapproachesthatinstructorscanadoptforaddressingconflictintheclassroomasa learningopportunityforstudents.Onewaytobeginpreparingstudentstoengageinconflictmoments istohavethemidentifytheirapproachtoconflictandtheirconflictstyle(WilmotandHocker2011).By havingstudentsreadthroughthefollowingstatementsandidentifywhichstatementalignswiththeir viewsonconflict,studentsgainvaluableinsightsintotheirpreferredcommunicationmode competing,avoiding,compromising,collaborating,and/oraccommodating(ThomasandKilmann,1974): Ilovepeaceandharmonyandwillgotogreatlengthstoavoidconflict. Isometimeswillwillinglyengageinconflict,butonlyifIcanseenoothergoodchoice. Ilikethegiveandtakeofagoodverbalconflictandamnotparticularlywaryofgettinginvolved. Ienjoyconstructiveconflict.MyadrenalinegetsgoingandIliketoseewhatcancomeofit.I evenseekoutconflictattimes. Icountonconflicttohelpcleartheair,solveproblems,andgetustoadifferentplace. Additionally,instructorscanimplementactivitieswherestudentsbrainstormconstructiveand deconstructiveapproachesforaddressingconflict.Oneactivity,adaptedfromTheCompleteGuideto ConflictResolutionintheWorkplacebyMarickF.MastersandRobertR.Albright,asksstudentsto thinkofarecentconflicttheyhavehadwithapeer,superior,orsubordinate;writedownwhatthe conflictwasabout;andlistthevariouswaystheycouldhavehandledit.Finally,theyidentifyhowthey handleditandwhyitworkedordidnotwork. Utilizingroleplayisalsoahelpfulstrategyforgeneratinghelpfulproactiveandreactivestrategiesfor conflictcommunication.Thisactivelearningstrategygivesstudentstheopportunitytosolveaproblem, applyskills,explore/changevalues,developempathy,andtobecomeawareoftheirassumptions (Nickerson2007).Roleplaysarewellsuitedforexploringconflictcommunicationbecausetheyhelp studentsexperiencestressful,unfamiliar,complex,orcontroversialsituations(Bonwell1991). Studentscanreflectonthewordsandactionsofeachcharactertodeterminetheeffectivenessof communicationinaddressingtheconflictandtheparticularconflictmodespresentintheirscenario. Facilitatingdifficultconversationsoncontroversialtopicsisacommonpracticeamonginstructorsfrom almostalldisciplinarybackgrounds.Byincorporatingproactiveandreactivestrategiesforconflict communicationintothecoursecontentandmodelingconstructivewaysofhandlingconflict,instructors canbetterpreparestudentstolearnfromallaspectsofdifferenceintheclassroom. Resources: Bonwell,CharlesC.,andJamesEison.ActiveLearning:CreatingExcitementintheClassroom.ASHE ERICHigherEducationReportNo.1,1991. ManagingClassroomConflict.CenterforFacultyExcellence,UniversityofNorthCarolinaatChapel Hill.November2004. Masters,MarickF.,andRobertR.Albright.TheCompleteGuidetoConflictResolutionintheWorkplace. NewYork:AmericanManagementAssociation,2002. 49

Nash,RobertJ.,BradleyLaSha,DeMethra,andArthurW.Chickering.HowtoTalkAboutHotTopicson Campus.JosseyBass,2008. Nickerson,Stephanie.RolePlay:AnOftenMisusedActiveLearningStrategy.EssaysonTeaching Excellence19.5(20072008). RolePlayExercises.SchreyerInstituteforTeachingExcellence:PennStateUniversity,2007. Thomas,KennethW.,andRalphH.Kilmann(1974).ThomasKilmannconflictmodeinstrument.Tuxedo, NY:Xicom,Inc,1974. Wilmot,William,andJoyceHocker.InterpersonalConflict.8thed.McGrawHill,2011. Submittedby Dr.AmandaG.McKendree,AssistantDirector KanebCenterforTeachingandLearning UniversityofNotreDame http://kaneb.nd.edu

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TeachingEvening(orotherextendedtime)Classes
Teachingclassesthatmeetformorethantheusual50or75minuteclassperiodcreatesadifferentset ofchallengesforboththefacultymemberandthestudents.Considertheideasbelowformaximizing learningineveningclasses.Ifyoudlikemoredetailedsuggestionsandresourcesforeachtip,justask! molly.h.baker@svcc.edu 1. Duringthefirstclass,helpeveryonegettoknoweachother. 2. Includeopeningactivitiesineachclassthatassiststudentsinquicklyshiftinggearsfromwhatever theyweredoingduringthedayorbeforeclasstofocusonthatclassstopic/content. 3. Structurethelearningenvironmentinanyof7+waystoreducethementalfatiguethatlearners maybringtoclassordevelopduringalongerclass. 4. Coachyourstudentstoeatforlearningpriortoclass.Specifickindsofprotein,carbsandfat produceenergy;othersmakeyourelaxedandsleepy.Noteatingatallbeforeclassistheworst! 5. Employsmallgroupactivitiesoftenduringclass,basedonresearchforhowtousethemeffectively topromotelearning,motivation,andengagement. 6. Employincompletehandouts,reviewsheets,worksheetsorotherprintedresourcesthatstudents workwithwhilelisteningordoingthroughouttheevening 7. Engagestudentsinlearninghowtolearn,throughexperiencingyourdisciplinarynetworks, researchingorusingtechtoolsthatlendthemselvestoworkinyourfield,participatinginauthentic classprojectsthatsimulateonesthattheymightdowhenworkinginyourfield,andgettingstarted onmeaningfulassignmentsthatrequirevarioustypesoflibraryresearch. 8. InviteguestspeakerstoattendyourclassLIVEinpersonorviachat,speakerphone,orweb conference;orinarecordedfashionsuchasviavideoonsitescenarios;orasanasynchronous criticofstudentprojects. 9. Duringoneeveningclass,deviseseveralwaysforthestudentstoexperiencethecontentmultiple times,suchasrespondingtoclickerquestions,workingthroughproblemsetsinsmallgroups, developingexamorstudyquestionsfromthereadings,practicingsampleexamquestionswitha partner,exploringcasestudiesorscenariosinwhichthecontentisappliedtosolvenovelproblems, orlisteningtoshortpresentationswith13slides. Submittedby MollyH.Baker,Ph.D. Director,InstructionalTechnology SaukValleyCommunityCollege

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NutritionandLearning
Letsconsideramajorfactorthataffectsstudentsattentionandengagement,especiallyinanevening orotherextendedlengthclass.Ofcourse,overallnutritionaffectsthebrainalso,thingslikeenoughiron, vitamins,calcium,andfiber.Butherewearegoingtodiscusshowwhatandwhenyourstudentseatthe dayofclasscanmakeamajordifferenceintheirabilitytostayawake,focusedandabletolearnfor severalhoursattheendoftheday.Moststudentsdontknowthis! Brainsneedproteins,carbohydratesandfatstoproduceenergythatcanbedrawuponwhilelearning. However,notanytypeofprotein,carborfatwilldo.Someoftheseactuallymakeapersondrowsyor preventtherightkindofproteins,carbsandfatsfromdoingtheirjob!Considerthesefactsandthen readmoreaboutitathttp://www.askdrsears.com/HTML/4/T040400.ASP 1. Studentswhoarrivehungry,ingeneral,arelikelytobeirritable,restless,apathetic,sad, unmotivated,andlessabletorecallearlierlearningorapplynewlearningtoproblemsolvingtasks. Hungercontributestomentalfatigue,asdiscussedinDayThree.Thisgoesforskippingbreakfast beforeanextendedmorningclass,aswell. 2. Eatinghabitssuchaseatingalargemealbeforeclassoreatingahighcarbohydrate/lowprotein mealmaysolvethehungerproblem,butmakesyourstudentsdrowsyandlethargic.Chocolate, pastries,beanburritos,sunflowerseeds,bananas,dairyproducts,spaghettiwithheavysauce,and fattiermeatstendtorelaxthebrainandareidealintheeveningifyouaretryingtowinddown! 3. Omega3fattyacidsareimportanttogeneralbrainhealth.Foodssuchaseggs,flaxorcanolaoil, salmonortuna,soybeans,walnutsorpumpkinseeds,wheatgerm,andalmondsareexcellent sourcesofthesehealthyfats. 4. Bestfoodsforpreclasseatingbeforeaneveningclassinclude: a. Alowercalorie,lightmeal,suchasasaladwithtuna,vegetables,anddressingmadewith canolaoil,stirfriedvegetablesonbrownrice,orevenyogurtandfreshfruit. b. Amorefilling,butnutritiousmealsuchasaPB&Jsandwichonwholegrainbreadandanapple andglassofmilk. c. Complexcarbohydratessuchasfruitslikeapplesororanges(notfruitjuice),wholegrain cereals(e.g.,oatmeal)orwholegrains(notwheat,butwholewheat,brownrice),andaslittle refinedsugaraspossible(e.g,colas,candy,pastries). d. Proteinscontainingtyrosineaminoacids,suchasseafood,turkey,tofu,lentils,peanuts(or peanutbutter),tuna,salmon.Theseproteinswakeupthebrain,ratherthanrelaxandwindit down. e. Wheneatingbothenergyproducingproteinsandcarbs,eattheproteinBEFOREthecomplex carbohydrates. f. Avoidnicotine,artificialsweeteners,hydrogenatedfatsinpreparedfoods,alcohol,junksugars andwhitebreadbeforeclass. Submittedby MollyH.Baker,Ph.D. Director,InstructionalTechnology SaukValleyCommunityCollege

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IdentifyingStudentLearningFactors
Inclusivelearningenvironmentsarepromotedbyfindingoutaboutyourstudentsandrespondingto whatyoulearn.Itisthisresponsivenesstoyourstudentsthatmovesacoursedesignfromteacher centeredtolearningfocused. Itisofteneasytositinyourofficebyyourselfandthinkaboutthecoursesyouwillteach.Maybeyou preferthecoffeeshoponthecornerorathomelateatnightlikeme.Eachtimewedesignalectureora lessonoranentirecourseinthismanner,itbecomeseasytoomitthemostimportantfactorinthe teachingandlearningenvironmentthestudentasthelearner.Andworkingbyourselvesallowsusto glossovertheassumptionswearemakingaboutthoseintheaudiencemeanttobethebeneficiariesof ourplans.Iftheseassumptionsgounacknowledgedandthestudentsarenotpartoftheconsideration indesigninginstruction,itmakesitdifficulttodesignlearningfocusedlessonsorcourses.Itiseasyto thinkabouttheseassumptionsbuthowoftendoyoutakethetimetowritethemout? Usethequickfillinsbelowtoidentifythestudentlearningfactorsthatshouldbeaddressedinyour lessonsorcoursesandtoremindyouwhatassumptionsyouaremakingaboutyourstudents. 1. Fromthatperspectivethattheabsolutelyperfectstudentsenrollinyourclass,whatcharacteristics (aslearners)wouldyouwantthosestudentstohavetorunyourideallessonorcourseandseethose wonderfulstudentssucceed?Takeamomenttothinkaboutthebackgroundknowledge,skills,and attitudesyouwouldlikeyourstudentstohaveuponenteringyourlessonorcourse.Writethose thoughtsdownbelow.

IdealWorldAnswers

Comingintoyourlesson/course WhatbackgroundknowledgedostudentswillNEEDtopossesstosucceedinyourcourse? WhatkindoflearningskillsdostudentswillNEEDtopossesstosucceedinyourcourse?Considerthe vastarrayofskillssuchasreadingskills;writingabilities;studyskills;testtakingabilities;thinkingskills; organizationalskills;mathematicalskills;laboratoryskills;libraryskills;etc.) WhatkindofattitudedostudentswillNEEDtopossesstosucceedinyourcourse?(i.e.,expectations, interests,motivationtoworkandmeetthedemandsofyourcourse,willingnesstorevisecompleted work,etc.) 2. Next,considertalkingwithfacultythatmayhavetaughtyourlessonorcoursebefore.Talkwith studentsthathavetakensimilarcoursesorevenyourcourseinpreviousofferings.Askthemabout thatknowledge,thoseskills,andthoseattitudesthattheyactuallyhadwhentheywereaboutto enteryourlessonorcourse.Askthemtobehonestbrutallyso.Usethoseanswerstohelpyou respondasbestyoucantothequestionsbelow.

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RealWorldAnswers
Comingintoyourlesson/course
RWA:Whatbackgroundknowledgedoyouthinkstudentswillactuallypossessuponenteringyour course? RWB:Whatlearningskillsdoyouthinkstudentswillactuallypossessuponenteringyourcourse? RWC:Whatattitudesdoyouthinkstudentswillactuallypossessuponenteringyourcourse? 3. Now,comparetheanswersyouhavewritten.Usuallytherearesomemismatches.Afterall,weall dontusuallyteachouridealstudents.Weteachourrealstudents.Themismatchesorgaps betweenthesesetsofanswersarethestudentlearningfactorsthatwilllimitthepotentiallearning foryourstudentsinyourlessonorcourse. GapsinStudentsKnowledge:Thegap(s)betweenthebackgroundknowledgeIwantstudentstoknow comingintomycourseandthestudentsIwillactuallyhaveis/are: GapsinStudentsSkills:Thegap(s)betweenthelearningskillsIwantstudentstoknowcomingintomy courseandthestudentsIwillactuallyhaveis/are: GapsinStudentsAttitudes:Thegap(s)betweentheattitudesIwantstudentstoknowcomingintomy courseandthestudentsIwillactuallyhaveis/are: Inorderforstudentlearningtobeoptimizedinyourlessonorcourse,thesegapswillneedtobe intentionallyaddressedinthelessonsorinhomeworkofthecourse. Andnowthatsomeofyourassumptionsaboutyourstudentsarewrittendown,usethemtoaskyour studentsquestionsoncetheyactuallybecomepartofyourcourse.Considerknowledgeprobesorskill tryingoutlessonsearlyoninthesemester.TheapproachoffacultymentionedintheKenBainbook WhattheBestCollegeTeachersDooftry,fail,receivefeedback,andtryagainworkswonderfullytofind outwhatskillsyourstudentshaveorneedworkon.Finally,andmostimportantly,respondtowhatyou findoutbyadaptingyourlessonsandcoursetotheactualstudentsinyourcourse.Thisabilityto respondtowhatyoufindoutwillgoalongwaytowardmakingyourstudentsfeelincludedinthe learningprocessandwillallowyoutomeetyourhighexpectationsforthem. KenSagendorf,Ph.D. Director,CenterforExcellenceinTeachingandLearning(CETL) RegisUniversity ksagendorf@regis.edu

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ThePastisAlwaysWithUs
Ourbrainsarenotbuilttorememberunconnectedfacts;ifmaterialdoesntrelatetosomething elsethatisimportanttous,weforget.Notonlydoweneedpriorexperiencesasananchor,butthe qualityofourpriorassumptions,conceptualknowledgeandbiasescanallinfluencewhatwelearn,for betterorworse.Ifyoudliketoexperiencetheimportanceofpriorknowledgefirsthand,takea challengingclassinanewarea.Noticehowmuchyoutrytouseyourpriorknowledgetoanchornew materialandseehowmanymisconceptionsyouhave! Despitethesewellknownfindings,mostofusdolittletodiscoverwhatourstudentsalready know(orthinktheyknow)aboutourdisciplines.Andyet,thatpriorknowledgemaymakeorbreaktheir chancesforsuccessinourclasses. Inintroductorycourseswetypicallydontexpectstudentstoshowasophisticatedgraspof disciplinaryconcepts.Unfortunately,weoftenfindsomethingmoredifficulttochange:amental frameworkthatsabitdentedormissingcriticalpieces.Misconceptionsandincorrectinformationcan distortandlimitstudentlearning,especiallyattheintroductorylevel.Unfortunately,sincethisincorrect informationisalsoanchoredinpriorknowledge,itcanberesistanttochange.Discoveringcommon studentmisconceptionsanddesigningexperiencesthatchallengethemisacriticalpartofbuildingnew levelsofexpertise.Experiments,demonstrations,videosandotheractivemethodsthatdirectly challengestudentmisconceptionsareoftenthemostpowerfulsincetheyusemultiplechannelsandcan havemoreemotionalimpactthanlectureorreadings.Ittakesapowerfulstimulustodislodge embeddedrust. Asstudentsadvanceinthediscipline,theybegintodevelopmoresophisticatedknowledge structures.Intheseupperlevelclassesitsimportanttofindoutwhatstudentsalreadyknowsothatyou donttrytobuildonknowledgethatisntthere.Havingagoodunderstandingofpriorknowledgecan alsohelpyouadvisestudentssomeonewithgapsthatarejusttoolargemayneedtotakeapre requisitecourse,whileothersmayneedtobereferredfortutoringinspecificareas.Otherstudents maybeabletoskipsometopics,ortakeamoreindepthapproach. Therearemanywaystoassesspriorlearning.Somefacultymembersusepretestsorwriting assignmentsthatidentifystrengthsandweaknesses,butitdoestaketimetoreadandanalyzethem, evenwhentheyareungraded.Askingstudentstodrawaconceptmapshowingwhattheyknowona giventopicisaquickwaytoshowyouwhatstudentsthinkisimportantandalsogivesyouapictureof howtheyorganizethatinformation.AnotherapproachistheKnowledgesurvey.Thistypeofsurveyis oftenquitelengthy,butstudentsarenotactuallyaskedtoanswerthequestionsastheywouldonan exam.Instead,theyratetheirlevelofknowledgeofeachconceptorprocessonathreepointscalefrom absolutecertaintytocompleteignorance.Thesesurveyscanbeanalyzedelectronicallyandthey provideaquicksnapshotoftheclassthatcanhelpyoufocusyourclasstimemore productively.Administeringthesamesurveyoraskingforthesameconceptmapattheendofthe courseprovidesacheckuponhoweffectivelyyouwereabletoreachyourgoals;ideallyyouwillsee positiveimprovementsfortheclassasawholeandforindividualstudentsaswell. Submittedby CarolynOxenford DirectoroftheCenterforTeachingExcellence MarymountUniversity www.marymount.edu/facultyStaff/cte

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KnowledgeSurveys
Source:EdwardNuhfer,UniversityofColoradoatDenverandDeloresKnipp,UnitedStatesAirForce Academy(2003,ToImprovetheAcademy,v.21,pp.5978.)<RetrievedMarch3,2009from http://www.isu.edu/ctl/facultydev/KnowS_files/KnowS.htm.> Purpose:Knowledgesurveysprovideameanstoassesschangesinspecificcontentlearningand intellectualdevelopment.Moreimportantly,theypromotestudentlearningbyimprovingcourse organizationandplanning.Forinstructors,thetoolestablishesahighdegreeofinstructionalalignment, and,ifproperlyused,caninsureemploymentofallseven"bestpractices"duringtheenactmentofthe course.Beyondincreasingsuccessofindividualcourses,knowledgesurveysinformcurriculum developmenttobetterachieve,improveanddocumentprogramsuccess. Steps:Studentstakeknowledgesurveysatthebeginningandendofeachcourse.Asurveyconsistsof courselearningobjectivesframedasquestionsthattestmasteryofparticularobjective..Students addressthequestions,notbyprovidingactualanswers,butinsteadbyrespondingtoathreepoint ratingofone'sownconfidencetorespondwithcompetencetoeachquery.Theresultsshowgainsin knowledge,asinthechartbelow,whichcanbecorrelatedwiththefinalexamquestions. KnowledgesurveysarepowerfulassessmentinstrumentsusefulalsoforpublicationsintheScholarship ofTeachingandLearningwherefacultyconductrigorousresearchontheirownclassestodetermine learningoutcomes. ThosewhowanttolearnmoreaboutKnowledgesurveysshouldregisterforEdNuhferstwoworkshops onthistopic.EdisprobablytheworldsleadingexpertonKnowledgeSurveys. Comparisonofnormalizedreported knowledgeandfinalexaminations resultsfromastronomyclass. Studentswereslightlyoverconfident abouttheirknowledgeonseveralof thequestionsfromthefirstpartof thecourseandlessconfidentabout theirknowledgelevelofmaterial towardthelatterpartofthecourse. Thelatterportionofthecourse coveredmaterialthatwas conceptuallyandmathematically newtothestudents.(fromKnipp, 2001) SubmittedbyBarbaraMillis TeachingandLearningCenter UniversityofTexasatSanAntonio http://www.utsa.edu/tlc/

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EffectiveFeedback
Timelyandexplicitfeedbackisanimportantcomponentofthelearningprocess.Belowisanexcerpton strategiesforgivingeffectivefeedbackfromHowLearningWorks:SevenResearchBasedPrinciplesfor SmartTeaching(pp.139152). ***** Researchhaslongshownthatfeedbackismoreeffectivewhenitidentifiesparticularaspectsofstudent performancetheyneedtoimproveratherthanprovidingagenericevaluationofperformance,suchasa gradeorabstractpraiseordiscouragement.Althoughgradesandscoresprovidesomeinformationon thedegreetowhichstudentsperformancehasmetthecriteria,theydonotexplainwhichaspectsdid ordidnotmeetthecriteriaandhow(pp.139140). Simplygivingstudentslotsoffeedbackabouttheirperformanceisalsonotnecessarilyanexampleof effectivefeedback.Toomuchfeedbacktendstooverwhelmstudents.Forexample,researchhasshown thattoomanycommentsintheformofmarginnotesonstudentwritingareoftencounterproductive becausestudentsareeitheroverwhelmedbythenumberofitemstoconsiderorbecausetheyfocus theirrevisiononasubsetofthecommentsthatinvolvedetailed,easytofixelementsratherthanmore importantconceptualorstructuralchanges(p.140). Thefullbenefitsoffeedbackcanonlyberealizedwhenthefeedbackadequatelydirectsstudents subsequentpracticeandwhenstudentshavethecapacitytoincorporatethatfeedbackintofurther practice(p.141). Itisalsoimportanttoconsidertheappropriatetimingoffeedback.Thisinvolvesbothhowsoon feedbackisgiven(typically,earlierisbetter)aswellashowoften(typically,morefrequentlyisbetter). Theidealtimingoffeedback,however,cannotbedeterminedbyanygeneralrule.Rather,itisbest decidedintermsofwhatwouldbestsupportthegoalsyouhavesetforstudentslearning.Generally, morefrequentfeedbackleadstomoreefficientlearningbecauseithelpsstudentsstayontrackand addresstheirerrorsbeforetheybecomeentrenched(p.142). WHATSTRATEGIESDOESTHERESEARCHSUGGEST? Usearubrictospecifyandcommunicateperformancecriteria.Whenstudentsdonotknowwhatthe performancecriteriaare,itisdifficultforthemtopracticeappropriatelyandtomonitortheirprogress andunderstanding.Acommonapproachtocommunicatingperformancecriteriaisthrougharubrica scoringtoolthatexplicitlyrepresentstheperformanceexpectationsforagivenassignment.Arubric dividestheassignedworkintocomponentpartsandprovidescleardescriptionsofthecharacteristicsof high,medium,andlowqualityworkassociatedwitheachcomponent(p.146). Buildinmultipleopportunitiesforpractice.Becauselearningaccumulatesgraduallywithpractice, multipleassignmentsofshorterlengthorsmallerscopetendtoresultinmorelearningthanasingle assignmentofgreatlengthorlargescope.Bearinmind,however,thatasingleopportunitytopracticea givenkindofassignmentislikelytobeinsufficientforstudentstodeveloptherelevantsetofskills,let alonetobeabletoincorporateyourfeedbackonsubsequent,relatedassignments(p.146).

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Setexpectationsaboutpractice.Studentscanunderestimatetheamountoftimeanassignment requires.Itisvitaltoprovidestudentswithguidelinesfortheamount,type,andlevelofpractice requiredtomastertheknowledgeorskillsatthelevelyouexpect(p.147). Giveexamplesormodelsoftargetperformance.Itcanalsobehelpfultoshowstudentsexamplesof whatthetargetperformancelookslike(suchasaneffectivepaperorarobustsolutiontoaproblem). Sharingsamplesofpaststudentworkcanhelpstudentsseehowyourperformancecriteriacanbeput intopracticeinanactualassignment.Suchexamplesareevenmorepowerfulwhenyoueitherhighlight orannotateparticularfeaturesofthesampleassignmentthatwork(p.147). Showstudentswhatyoudonotwant.Illustratecommonmisinterpretationsstudentshaveshownin thepastorexplainwhysomepiecesofworkdonotmeetyourassignmentgoals.Suchexamplescan alsobeusedtogivestudentspracticeatdistinguishingbetweenhighandlowqualitywork.Toget studentsmoreactivelyinvolvedandchecktheirunderstanding,youcanaskthemtogradeasample assignmentbyfollowingarubric(p.148). Providefeedbackatthegrouplevel.Notallfeedbackhastobeindividualtobevaluable.Youmightat timesidentifythemostcommonerrorsthatstudentscommitted,providethegroupwiththislist,and discussthoseerrors(p.150). Incorporatepeerfeedback.Notallfeedbackhastocomefromyoutobevaluable.Withexplicit guidelines,criteria,orarubric,studentscanprovideconstructivefeedbackoneachotherswork.This canalsohelpstudentsbecomebetteratidentifyingthequalitiesofgoodworkanddiagnosingtheirown problems.Besidestheadvantagestostudents,peerfeedbackallowsyoutoincreasethefrequencyof feedbackwithoutincreasingyourload.Keepinmind,however,thatforpeerfeedbacktobeeffective, youneedtoexplainclearlywhatitis,therationalebehindit,howstudentswouldengageinit,andgive studentsadequatepracticewithfeedback(p.151). Requirestudentstospecifyhowtheyusedfeedbackinsubsequentwork.Feedbackismostvaluable whenstudentshavetheopportunitytoreflectonitsotheycaneffectivelyincorporateitintofuture practice,performance,orboth.Becausestudentsoftendonotseetheconnectionbetweenoramong assignments,projects,exams,andsoon,askingstudentstonoteexplicitlyhowapieceoffeedback impactedtheirpracticeorperformancehelpsthemseeandexperiencethecompletelearningcycle. Forexample,someinstructorswhoassignmultipledraftsofpapersrequirestudentstosubmitwitheach subsequentdrafttheircommentedonpriordraftwithaparagraphdescribinghowtheyincorporated thefeedback.Ananalogousapproachcouldbeappliedtoaprojectassignmentthatincludedmultiple milestones(pp.151152).
Sourcefromwhichthismaterialisexcerpted:Ambrose,S.A.,etal.(2010).HowLearningWorks:SevenResearch BasedPrinciplesforSmartTeaching.SanFrancisco,CA:JosseyBass.

Submittedby: KathyWatson AssociateDean,FacultyDevelopment EckerdCollege

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HaveStudentsProcessFeedback
Haveyoueverwonderedwhetheryourstudentsactuallyreadyourcomments,feedback,and correctionsontheirwork?Hereisawaytoensuretheytakeyourfeedbackseriously.Afteryoureturn afirstdraftofapaper,afinaldraft,orproject,havestudentsdoafollowupwritingassignmentof paraphrasingyourcomments.Thisfollowupassignmenthasseveralgoodconsequences.First, studentsreadallyourfeedbackcarefullyanddotheirbesttounderstandit.Second,youfindouthow areinterpretingyourcommentsinparticular,whethertheyareunderstandingthemasyou intended.Iftheyarenot,youcancorrectanymisunderstandings.Third,becausetheyarereally readingandtryingtomakesenseoutofyourfeedback,theyaremorelikelytouseittoproducebetter workinthefuture. Submittedby LindaB.Nilson,Ph.D. Director,OfficeofTeachingEffectivenessandInnovation ClemsonUniversity www.clemson.edu/OTEI

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FormativeandSummativeFeedbackandItsImpactonLearnerMotivation
AccordingtoDempsey&Sales(1993),themotivationalapproachtofeedbackisbasedonthebeliefthat lettingpeopleknowhowwelltheyareperformingataskactsasanincentiveforgreatereffortinthe future(p.4).Creemers(1996)citedtheuseoffeedbackandcorrectiveinstructionasoneofthe instructorbehaviorsthatcontributetobetterstudentoutcomes. Learnerstendtofallonagoalcontinuumthatrangesfromegoinvolved(performanceorientation)to taskinvolved(learningorientation).Iftheyareegoinvolved,theyhavestrongincentivesto demonstrateanddisplaytheirabilities.Iflearnersaretaskinvolved,theypossessstrongincentivesto learn,gainskills,andimprovemastery.Ifalearnerreceivesnocuesorfeedbacktoselectorfavorone goalorientationoveranother,theyactaccordingtotheirpredispositions(Dempsey&Sales,1993; HattieandTimperley,2007). Typically,instructorfeedbackhasbeenviewedasausefultechniquetoassistlearners.Forexample, learnerthoughtpatternsand/oractionscanberedirectedandareasofstrengthorweaknesscanbe communicated.AccordingtoHoska(1993),itispossibletoprovidefeedbacktolearnersthatcan influencetheirgoalorientationsandmaximizetheirincentivetoperform.Approachesthathavebeen successfulinclude:modifyingthelearnersviewofintelligence,alteringthegoalstructureofthe learningtask,andcontrollingthedeliveryoflearningrewards.Hoska(1993)alsobelievesfeedback shouldhelplearnersunderstandthatabilitiesareskillsthatcanbedevelopedthroughpractice,effortis keytoincreasingonesskills,andmistakesarenotfailures;rathertheyarepartoftheskilldevelopment process. Inordertoprovideeffectivefeedback,thefacilitatorneedstoreflectuponhis/herapproachtothe teachinglearningprocess.Forexample,doestheinstructorviewlearningfromaconstructivist perspectiveorapproachitinamoretraditionalistfashion?Ifconstructivistteachingpracticesareused, theemphasisisonhelpinglearnersinternalizeandreshape,ortransformnewinformation.This transformationoccursthroughthecreationofnewunderstandings(Jackson,1986;Gardner,1991).New cognitivestructurescanemergefromtheseunderstandings.Incontrast,thetraditionalapproachhas beendeemedtobemoreofaprocesswherethelearningprocessinvolvesrepeatingormimingnew materialorinformation(Jackson,1986).Thesetwodifferentapproachestolearningwilldeterminethe instructionalstrategiesusedbytheinstructor,andinturnwillimpacttheleveloflearnermotivation. Feedbackcanalsobeorganizedarounddifferenttypesofinteraction:learnertolearner,learnerto instructor,learnertocontent,andlearnertointerface(Hillman,Willis,&Gunawardena,1994). WhiteandWeight(2000)discusstheissueoftheonlinestudentwhoneedsextramotivation,and proposevariousstrategiesthattheinstructor/facilitatorcanusetoprovidethismotivation.Theserange fromsendingadirectnotetothestudenttoaskingallstudentstorelatetheirlearningtotheircurrent workexperience.Theauthorsalsostresstheimportanceofthesensitivenatureoftheseactions.In addition,theybelieveFeedbackthatistimelyisfarmoremotivationalandbeneficialtoperformance improvementthandelayedfeedback.Thus,onlinefeedbackisbestwhenitisprompt(p.63). Formativefeedbackpotentiallymodifiesastudentsthinkingorbehaviorforthepurposeoflearning, andsummativefeedbackassesseshowwellastudentaccomplishesataskorachievesaresultforthe purposeofgrading(White&Weight,2000,p.168).Sinceformativefeedbackinfluencesthoughtand behavior,itismoremotivational.Duringthisprocessstudentsareaskedtocontinuedoingwhatthey 60

havebeendoing,askquestions,participate,stayontopic,and/ormodifytheirthinkingorapproach (whenandifnecessary).White&Weight(2000)alsostressthatfeedbackshouldbemultidimensional, nonevaluative,supportive,studentcontrolled,consistent,constructive,objective,timely,andspecific. Theycitesomeofthebestpracticesusedbyonlineinstructorsforprovidingconstructiveformativeand summativefeedback: Focusonspecificbehaviorratherthanontheonlinestudent Taketheneedsoftheonlinestudentintoaccount Directfeedbacktowardbehaviortheonlinestudentcanchange Helponlinestudentstoownthefeedback Givetimelyonlinefeedback Checkonlinefeedbackforclarity Consideronlinefeedbackaspartofanongoingrelationship(White&Weight,2000,p.173 4). Aswestrivetoprovideconstructiveandsubstantiveformativeandsummativefeedback,itisessential tounderstanditsimpactonlearnermotivation.Thisknowledgewillallowustoutilizemoreeffective instructionalpracticesandprovidemoremeaningfullearningexperiences,whilealsoimprovingour coursedesign. References Creemers,B.(1996).Theschooleffectivenessknowledgebase.InD.Reynolds(Ed).Makinggoodschools. London:Routledge. Dempsey,J.V.&Sales,G.C.(1993).Interactiveinstructionandfeedback.EnglewoodCliff,NJ:Educational TechnologyPublications. Gardner,H.(1991).Theunschooledmind:Howchildrenthinkandhowschoolsshouldteach.NewYork: BasicBooks. Hattie,J.&Timperley,H.(2007).Thepoweroffeedback.ReviewofEducationalResearch.77(1).81112. London:SagePublications.doi:10.3102/003465430298487 Hillman,D.C.A.,Willis,D.J.&C.N.Gunawardena(1994).LearnerInterfaceInteractioninDistance Education:AnExtensionofContemporaryModelsandStrategiesforPractitioners.TheAmerican JournalofDistanceEducation.8(2),3042. Hoska,D.M.(1993).MotivatinglearnersthroughCBIfeedback:Developingapositivelearner perspective.InDempsey,J.V.&Sales,G.C.(Eds.),Interactiveinstructionandfeedback(pp.105 132).EnglewoodCliffs,NJ:EducationalTechnologyPublications. Jackson,P.W.(1986).Thepracticeofteaching.NewYork:TeachersCollegePress. Sales,G.C.&Johnston,M.D.(1988).Graphicfidelity,gender,andperformanceincomputerbased simulations.(ResearchBulletin#1,ImprovingtheUseofTechnologyinSchools:WhatWeAre Learning).Minneapolis,MN:MECC/UMCenterfortheStudyofEducationalTechnology. White,K.W.&Weight,B.H.(2000).Theonlineteachingguide:Ahandbookofattitudes,strategiesand techniquesforthevirtualclassroom.Boston,MA:AllynandBacon. SubmittedbyJulieFrese,Ph.D. UniversityoftheRockies Julie.Frese@faculty.rockies.edu http://rockies.edu

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HolisticConversationsAboutaCourseActivityfortheLastWeekofClass
Forsomeclassesitmaybeimportanttoobtaininformationaboutwhatassignmentsandexperiences wereofvaluebeforecourseevaluationsarereturnedespeciallyifyouarepreparingtoteachthesame coursethenexttermpriortocourseevaluationsbeingprocessedandreturned. 1.Prepareasheetofpaperthatsimplyhasalabelfortheassignmentorexperienceonthetoponefor eachareayouareinterestedinobtaininginformation.Forexample: 2.Groupyourstudentsbythenumberofareasyouareexploring. 3.Giveeachgrouponeofthesheetsaskonepersontobethescribe.Theyaretowritewhatwas effectiveabouttheassignment/experienceandwhatwasineffectiveabouttheassignment.Givethe groupaboutthreeminutestodothis. 4.Rotatesheetsclockwise.Thenextgroupreadswhatisonthesheetandaddseffectiveandineffective aspects.Givethegroupaboutthreeminutestodothis. 5.Rotatesheetsclockwiseagainsametaskasabove.Givethegroupaboutthreeminutestodothis. 6.Rotatesheetsclockwisethisisthelasttimethegroupistoreadallthecommentsandthenrank orderthethreemostimportantcommentsonthesheet.Thegroupsmayneedmorethanthree minutesbutareusuallydonewithinfiveminutes. 7.Openthefloorfordiscussion.Startwiththeareayouaremostinterestedinandaskthegroupthat hasthatsheettotalkabouttheirrankingandwhytheyratedthingsthisway.Thisallowsyoutohear, respond,andacknowledgethestrengthsandweaknesses.Becausethegroupthatranksspeaksfirst thereislessresistancetoengagingintheconversationsincetheyarejustreportingouttherankingand werenotresponsiblefortheitemsonthesheet.WhatIhavefoundisthatthisactsasacatalystfora healthywholeclassdiscussionofwhatwaslearnedduringthecourse. Inadditiontoprovidingyouwithguidanceforthenexttimeyouteachthecourse,youwillbeableto reemphasizecourseoutcomes,rearticulateinterconnectionsofconceptsandexperiences,and communicateintentwhilehavingachancetoreviewmaterial.Collectthesheetssothatyoucanread everythingandusethemtoshapeaspectsofthecoursethenexttimeyouteachit. RebeccaClemente,DirectorfortheCenterofTeachingandLearning NorthCentralCollege Naperville,Illinois http://northcentralcollege.edu Autobiography ofyour science education Longterm observation journal Articlecritique Smallgroup discussionson differentiation Field experience

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AClassroomAssessmentTechnique:KeyPrincipleandRestating
(Source:JohnHertel,alawprofessorattheUnitedStatesAirForceAcademy) [Effectiveinsmallandlargeclassesandusefulforonlineadaptations] Purpose:Tohelpbothyouandyourstudentsdeterminetheknowledgegainsfromasinglelesson. Steps:Beforebeginningadiscussion/lesson,havestudentswriteonanindexcardabroadconceptsuch astheprimaryconclusioninasciencearticle,thekeypointinaminicasestudy,orthethemeofawork ofliterature.Conductthelesson.Beforeadjournment,havethestudentsdrawalineontheindexcard undertheiroriginalcommentandrestatethesamebroadconceptwithonehopes!enhanced understanding. Assessmentandfollowon:Bycomparingstudent'sunderstandingpriortothelessontotheir understandingafterthelessonhasconcluded,yougetanideaofhowwelltheirknowledgehas deepenedornot.Youcandiscusswithstudentsinasubsequentmeetingtheclass'soverall comprehension,sharingparticularlycogentstudentsummaries.Youcanalsousetheresponsesto identifyandsubsequentlyaddressmisconceptions. Examples:Twoactualstudentresponsestoaminicasestudyinbusinesslaw,"ComedyCottage": ComedyCottage KeyPoint=whetherthemanagerviolatedthedutyofloyaltyandcompetitionbyopeninghis businessinthesamelocation Keypoint=issueinjunctiontostopleaseordertopreventhimfromcompetinginthecomedy clubbusinesswithinacertaindistance ComedyCottage Keypoint=Noideawhatthiscaseisabout.Don'tremember. Keypoint=Oneprincipleisthatofloyalty.Inacorporationyouarerequiredtobeloyalandnot taketheirsecretsandgocreateyourownbusiness(CopyCat).

Student

Student

Submitted by Barbara Millis Teaching and Learning Center University of Texas at San Antonio http://www.utsa.edu/tlc/

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AClassroomAssessmentTechnique:CategorizingGrid
[Effectiveinsmallandlargeclassesandusefulforonlineadaptations] Purpose:Tohelpbothyouandyourstudentsdeterminewhattheyknowanddontknow. Overview:Inmanydisciplines,especiallyatanintroductorylevel,afirststeptorealproblemsolvingis learninghowavarietyofconceptualtaxonomieswork.Inotherwords,studentsneedtolearntherules forwhatgoeswithwhat.Categorizinggridscanbeausefuldiagnosticaidinthesesituations.Coursesin thebiologicalandlifesciences,forexample,lendthemselveseasilytotheuseofthistechnique.To begin,youwillneedtoidentifyakeytaxonomyandthendesignagridthatrepresentsthose interrelationships.Keepitsimpleatfirst.Avoidtrivialorambiguousrelationships,whichtendtobackfire byfocusingstudentsonsuperficialkindsoflearning.Althoughprobablymostusefulinintroductory courses,thistechniquecanalsobeusedtohelpdevelopbasicstudyskillsforstudentswhoplanto continueinthefield.Thegridscanbeusedashomeworkortogenerategroupbasedonlineorinclass discussions.

ExampleofCategorizingGrid
SampleprovidedcourtesyofRobertMitchell(Biology). DivisionsofAorta PrimaryBranches Subdivisions Regionororgansupplies Ascendingaorta

Archoftheaorta Thoracicaorta

Abdominalaorta

Source:http://www.psu.edu/celt/CATs.html.PennStateCenterforExcellenceinTeachingandLearning.An IntroductiontoClassroomAssessmentTechniquesbyDianeM.Emerson,KathrynM.Plank,andR.NeillJohnson.

Submitted by Barbara Millis Teaching and Learning Center University of Texas at San Antonio http://www.utsa.edu/tlc/

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WritingtheRightBookforRightBrainers
Everythingwasgoingsowell.OuruniversityQualityEnhancementProgram(QEP)focusedon developingcriticalandcreativethinkers,theUniversityhadconstructedavenuefortheQEPcalledthe NoelStudioforAcademicCreativity,andwehadreflectedthenationalCreativeCampusInitiativeinthe newMinorinAppliedCreativeThinkingwehadOKedbytheCouncilonAcademicAffairs.Butwhenwe satdowntoworkoutthedetailsonthefirstcourseintheminor,IntroductiontoAppliedCreative Thinking,thestarsfelloutofalignment. Figuringoutthestudentlearningoutcomeswasrelativelyeasy.Syllabiusuallyfollowthecoursetexts, sowesetaboutselectingthebestbook.Unfortunately,ourchoicescamedowntotwoextremes, especiallysincewewantedatextbookaimedatcollege(andpossiblysecondaryeducation)students. Ononehandwerethesimplisticbooksalongthelinesofusingnurseryrhymestostimulatecreativity, andattheotherextremeloomedaslewofhighlycomplex,domainspecifictextsalongthelinesofThe UniversalEncyclopediaofCreativityStudiesinPsychology. Wewantedabookthatdidntinsultourstudentsintelligenceorbecomesohighlytechnicalthatthe majorconceptswouldbelostindomainspecificterminology.Wewantedabookthatwasdomain generalratherthanwrittenforaparticularfield.Wewantedsomeillustration,butwedetestedthose juniorhightextbooksthatcluttercolorfulpageswithsidebars,pictures,cutesyquotes,andIfyouwere atree,whatkindofatreewouldyoubeexercises.Wewantedthebookresearchbased,butnot researchdominated.Andfinally,tomakeitinteresting,wewerelookingforatextwithsomegood stories,bestpractices,keyresearch,popculture/currentreferences,andasenseofhumor. Ourproblemtookshapequickly.Notextthatwecouldlocatecontained,astheysayonHGTV,mostof ourmusthaves.Afterfightingthroughthefrustration,wefoundonesolutiondominatedallothers ifyouwanttheperfecttextbook,writeityourself. Thatoptionseemeddoable.Amongthethreeofus,wehadoverninehundredpublications,including overadozenbooks.AndsincewehadwrittensevenbooksintheItWorksforMeseriesforNew ForumsPress,wewroteupaprospectusandsentittoourpublisher.HisgreenlightarrivedlastAugust (2011),butinordertotraininstructorsweneededthetextpublishedbyApril(2012). Sixmonthstowriteatextandleaveamonthforourpublisherwasatallorder.Wesatdownand brainstormedaroughideaofthecontent.Forthefewmonthsprecedingouronset,wehadbeen researchingthematerial.Wehadactuallyfacilitatedaprofessionallearningcommunity(PLC)on creativity,andwehadpublishedafewarticlesaboutbrainstormingandthecreativeenvironment,sowe werentstartingfromscratch. Onethingthathelpedusimmenselywascomingupwiththebooksprecisetitle.WechoseApplied CreativeThinkingbecausethetitlesacronym(ACT)emphasizedakeyfeatureofthebook:wewanted studentsnotjustsittingthereintheirRodinpostures,butactuallyacting,applying,analyzing,assessing, andcreating.YoucouldsaywedesiredforthemtoBloom,atleastinthesenseofhigherorderthinking, but,moreimportantly,wedidntwantcreativityjustanotheracademicsubjectwewantedcreativitya skill,astrategythestudentsdeveloped. PoetTheodoreRoethkewrote,IlearnbygoingwhereIhavetogo.Wediscoveredthatinthevery writingofthebookweusedthestrategieswewerewritingabout,butalongthewaythewritingmade usawareofotherstrategies,suchasglimmercatching,thatwehadntconsideredinourinitial brainstormingandplanningofthebook.Inshort,wewerebothauthorsandstudents,withthebonus ofgettingtoACTonthesubjectofourresearch.

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Maybealltextbooksgetwrittenbecausetheprofessordoesntliketheextanttexts.Werenotsureifall thatstrue,butinwritingourIntroductiontoAppliedCreativeThinking(2012),welearnedalotmore thanwehadjustreadingtheresearch. Ourwritingprocessnotonlydemonstratedcreativity,butmodeledit. Submittedby CharlieSweet,EasternKentuckyUniversity HalBlythe,EasternKentuckyUniversity RustyCarpenter,EasternKentuckyUniversity

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BookReview:ReadingforUnderstanding:HowReadingApprenticeship ImprovesDisciplinaryLearninginSecondaryandCollegeClassrooms
RuthSchoenbach,CynthiaGreenleaf,andLynnMurphy.JosseyBass,2012,2ndedition. Whoisntanxiousaboutstudents'reading?Itseemsthatineverydisciplineandateverylevel,weare strugglingtofigureouthowtoholdstudentsaccountableforreadingasaprimarymodeoflearning.Do studentsread?Dotheycomprehendorretainwhattheyread?Howdowehelpthemdevelopcritical academicliteracies? Thisnewvolumeisafantasticresourceforchangingthatanxietyintoproductiveinquiryandpromising pedagogicalpractices.TheauthorsdrawuponfifteenyearsofresearchintoandpracticeoftheReading Apprenticeshipinstructionalframework,developedbyWestEdsStrategicLiteracyInitiative(SLI),which advocatesintegratingmetacognitiveconversationabouttextsintoclassroomlife(ineverydiscipline). Insodoing,theauthorsargue,facultybuildonstudents'underestimatedstrengthsasreadersand problemsolversandcreateinstructionalopportunitiesfor"apprenticing"studentsintodiscipline specificacademicliteracies.Withtheauthorityofseverallargerandomizedcontrolledtrialsprovingthe efficacyofthismethodandwiththeheartofdozensofclassroomcloseupsfeaturingthe extraordinaryworkofteachersandstudentsinhighschoolandcollegeclassrooms,thisbookisboth inspiringandpracticallyhelpful. Althoughtheexamplescomefromhighschoolandcommunitycollegeclassrooms,Ihavenotrouble relatingthispedagogicalapproachtomysetting.Ateverylevel,readingisaboutequity,andthisbook makesthecaseloudandclear:allofourstudentsdeservearigorousandengagingcurriculumthat apprenticesthemintoacademicanddisciplinarymodesofthinking. Submittedby KimCostino Director,TeachingResourceCenter CSU,SanBernardino http://trc.csusb.edu/

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WhattoDoAboutBimodalStudentEvaluations?
Haveyoueverreceivedapuzzlingsetofstudentevaluationswhereonegroupofstudentsthinksyouare thebestteachertheyeverhad,andanothersignificantgrouparefrustratedandconsideryouamenace totheirgradepointaverage?OvertheyearsIhaveconsultedwithafairnumberoffacultymembers whohavereceivedsimilarevaluationsfromtheirstudents,usuallyattheendofthetermwhenthereis nothingtodoforthem. ThemostcommonreasonforthisscenarioisexplainedintheworkofWilliamG.Perry,Jr.His1970 book,FormsofIntellectualandEthicalDevelopmentintheCollegeYears:AScheme(NewYork:Holt, RhinehartandWinston),laysouttheepistemologicaldevelopmentofstudentsintheirearlyadulthood inawaythatshinesalightonthebimodalevaluationconundrum. Perry'sresearchuncovershowstudentsgenerallymovefromasimplistic,dualisticviewofknowledge (thereisarightanswerandtheteacher'sjobistotellmewhatitis)towardstheapprehensionofamore relativisticviewduringtheirundergraduateyears.Later,duringgraduatestudies,manystudentsthen moveontomakingacommitmenttoaparticularworldview,orinterpretationofknowledge. Perry'smainlineofdevelopmentislaidoutonpages910asfollows: Position1Thestudentseestheworldinpolartermsofwerightgoodvs.otherwrongbad.Right AnswersexistintheAbsolute,knowntoAuthoritywhoseroleistomediate(teach)them.Knowledge andgoodnessareperceivedasquantitativeaccretionsofdiscreterightnessestobecollectedbyhard workandobedience(paradigm:aspellingtest). Position2Thestudentperceivesdiversityofopinion,anduncertainty,andaccountsforthemas unwarrantedconfusioninpoorlyqualifiedAuthoritiesorasmereexercisessetbyAuthoritysowecan learntofindTheAnswerforourselves. Position3Thestudentacceptsdiversityanduncertaintyaslegitimatebutstilltemporaryinareas whereAuthorityhasn'tfoundTheAnsweryet.HesupposesAuthoritygradeshimintheseareason goodexpressionbutremainspuzzledastostandards. Position4(a)Thestudentperceiveslegitimateuncertainty(andthereforediversityofopinion)tobe extensiveandraisesittothestatusofanunstructuredepistemologicalrealmofitsowninwhich anyonehasarighttohisownopinion,arealmwhichhesetsoveragainstAuthority'srealmwhere rightwrongstillprevails,or(b)thestudentdiscoversqualitativecontextualrelativisticreasoningasa specialcaseofwhatTheywantwithinAuthority'srealm. Position5Thestudentperceivesallknowledgeandvalues(includingauthoritys)ascontextualand relativisticandsubordinatesdualisticrightwrongfunctionstothestatusofaspecialcase,incontext. Position6Thestudentapprehendsthenecessityoforientinghimselfinarelativisticworldthrough someformofpersonalCommitment(asdistinctfromunquestionedorunconsideredcommitmentto simplebeliefincertainty). Position7ThestudentmakesaninitialCommitmentinsomearea

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Position8ThestudentexperiencestheimplicationsofCommitment,andexploresthesubjectiveand stylisticissuesofresponsibility. Position9Thestudentexperiencestheaffirmationofidentityamongmultipleresponsibilitiesand realizesCommitmentasanongoing,unfoldingactivitythroughwhichheexpresseshislifestyle. Wecanseethemovementfromadualistviewinpositions1through3,thenamovementthatbeginsto apprehendtherelativisticnatureofknowledgeinposition4,movingintoafullyrelativisticand contextualviewinposition5,andthenmakingthefirststepstowardscommitmentinposition6. Inmyobservations,manystudentsenteruniversitywithaclearlydualistpointofview.Accordingly, thesestudentsperceivethatthefunctionofateacheristoprovidestudentswithcorrectanswers.A facultymember'sinsistenceoncriticalthoughtandanalysisislikelytofaceincomprehensionamong introductorystudents.Inaway,thisisquitenatural.Eventhemostadvancedintellectual,whenfaced withlearningsomethingcompletelynew(learningtosnowboard,forexample)willatfirstdesperately wanttoknowtherightanswer!Aswebecomemoreproficient,wecanbegintoseethebenefitsof differentperspectivesandstyles,andmightactuallyenjoyexperimentingwiththem.Butuntilweknow wecanmakeitdownahillwithoutdisasterateveryturn,we'llclingforcomforttothe"rightanswer." Assignmentsthatrequirestudentstoanalyzemultiplepointsofviewwillconfuseintroductorystudents unlessparticularattentionispaidtopreparingthemforthistask.Whatdoesitreallymeantosee somethingthroughasociologist'seyes?Abiologist's?Acomposer'sears,anartist'seyesora writer's?Learningto"unpack"thesedifferentepistemologiesforintroductorystudentsprovides teacherswiththetoolstobringstudentsonboardthecriticalenterpriseoflearningthe"lenses" throughwhichthedisciplinesseeandinterprettheworld. Asstudentsbecomemorecomfortableinafield,theygenerallyprogressthroughthestagesthatPerry discoveredinhisresearchandtheproblemofbimodalstudentevaluationstendstodissipate.Just rememberthatyourstudentsarenotlikeyou,andthatyoulikelycannotrememberwhatitfeelsliketo notunderstandhowyourdisciplinestructuresknowledge.Preparingtoteachanintroductorycourse, particularlyasanewinstructor,requiresaleapoftheimaginationtoseethecoursefromyourstudents' eyes.Italsorequirestheskilltosurveyyourstudentsearlyandoftenduringthecoursetomaintain communicationandmakeadjustmentsasnecessary. Submittedby: EricKristensen,Director TeachingandLearningCentre CapilanoUniversity(Canada)

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GroupMemberRoles
Facilitator
Getstheteamstarted Makessureeveryoneunderstandswhats goingon Organizesteamsotheycompletethetask Doeseveryonegetwhattodo? Whoknowshowtostart? Imnotsureweallunderstandcansomeone help? Cansomeoneexplainitanotherway?

ResourceMonitor
Asksteamquestionsinordertodetermineif outsideresources(books,notes,materials, people)areneeded Callstheteacheroverforteam questions Arethereothermaterials/resourcesthatwould helpus? Doweallhavethesamequestion? Illcalltheteacherover.

ProductMonitor
Makessureeachmemberunderstandsthe work,recordsthedata,andcanreportout Givesupdatestatementsonteamsprogress Makessureeachmembersthinkingis incorporatedintothegroupsfinalproduct Areallofourideasincludedinourfinal product? Iseveryonepreparedtoreportoutourideas? Dideveryonegetthatinyournotes?

EquityMonitor
Encouragesequalparticipationandenforces useofnorms Makessureallvoicesareheard Assuresthatallmembersexplaintheir thinkingandunderstandeachothers thinking Howcanweworkthisout? Cansomeonerestatewhatwasjustsaid? Weneedtoworkonlisteningtoeachmember.

SOCRATIC CIRCLES
R. Wayne Willis Bellarmine University My thesis is that Socratic circles make a good fit for IDC seminars. Seminar comes from the Latin word semen. A seminar is meant to be a seedbed of new thinking made possible by the participation of the seminarians. There is no universally-recognized definition or practice of Socratic circles. Over the last quarter century books, websites and journal articles have discussed the use of Socratic principles in the classroom, all with slightly different interpretations and applications. All, however, have two things in common. 1. Appeal to the philosopher Socrates, considered by many to be the father of critical thinking. Socrates championed questioning as the royal road to wisdom, virtue and truth. Ultimately he was put to death for teaching the youth of Athens to question everything, including what they had been taught about the gods. Some of his most famous quotations concern critical thinking. "The unexamined life is not worth living." "The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing." "Know yourself." "Wonder is the beginning of wisdom." "Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel." Nature has given us two ears, two eyes, and but one tongue, to the end that we should hear and see more than we speak. In a former life, I was trained in the Rogerian school of psychotherapy, sometimes called client-centered or non-directive therapy. That was a thoroughly Socratic approach to psychotherapy. Carl Rogers, the founder, believed that those seeking therapy have the capacity to find their own answers. The therapists task is not to tell people what to do , Dr. Phil style, but to offer an accepting climate, treat clients with the utmost regard, work hard at understanding things from their point of view, and ask the questions that help them apply critical thinking to their crisis. A respectful milieu, Rogers believed, empowers and emboldens clients to find their own answers and work out their own salvation. Bringing Socrates into the classroom means, among other things, encouraging students to question everything (instead of swallowing whole what authorities say) and trusting that the students have within themselves the capacity to work out their own answers with a little help from their friends. 2. Appeal to the circle, or the round table, as a symbol. King Arthurs legendary roundtable, around which he and his knights sat, testified that everyone sitting around it had equal status. Contrast the round table with the rectangular table in many board rooms where the president or CEO sits at the head and presides or pontificates, or the traditional classroom designed for students to look, not at each other for enlightenment, God forbid, but at the teacher (see graphic #1). In a group setting, the Socratic assumption is that every student has a unique set of experiences and a unique set of lenses or filters through which everything experienced has been passed, and therefore has a unique contribution to make to the group. Each student is expected to give others in the group the benefit of her opinion. Even not-well-thought-out, halfbaked ideas are welcome. When one student speaks, the other students listen respectfully, ask questions, and expect to learn something--not just sit in silence and take notes, or wait for an opening to play their card. The circle culture aims to improve active listening skills and encourage civil discourse, as contrasted with The View or The McLaughlin Report, two current examples on television, where members of the panel attempt to drown out each other, cut off each other, and put down each other because they are interested only in winning the debate, not in understanding other points of view. Active listening and civil discourse are crucial to most things in life we valuerelating within the family, communicating at work, being a good friend, becoming a citizen of the world.

Highest learning is the cognitive goal of the socratic approach. Lower learning is what the traditional classroom offersbasic knowledge. A class on Socrates, for example, would cover date of birth and death, where he lived, what he taught, and the like. We could call it name, rank and serial number or just the facts,maam information. A second leve l of learning, higher learning, would be logical questioning based on the information provided; i.e., Why did Socrates not leave any writings? or What was the hemlock that he drank? A third level, highest learning, plumbs meaning beyond the information and reaches for ultimate matters; i.e., Why do bad things happen to good people? or What, if anything, in life is worth dying for? STEPS TO TAKE 1. Arrange Classroom. Many classrooms are not conducive to Socratic circles. Big tables and heavy chairs in a small space are formidable obstacles to Socratic learning. An ideal classroom for Socratic learning has easily movable chairs and no tables. Students in the seminar are arranged in two groups, half practitioners and half observers. Some instructors prefer to arrange the two groups in concentric circles, with the practitioners the inner circle and the observers the outer circle. I prefer two half circles facing each other (see graphic #2). The instructor is located somewhere outside the two groups, grading the participants on a grid. 2. Process Assigned Readings. The students have been assigned two short readings. I ask them to e-mail me before class one question each reading provoked within them. That serves two purposes: 1. It shows me that they read the articles 2. It can get those who are a little shy to speak up because they come to class prepared to make at least one comment in the circle. I often use a column from The New York Times on some current issue (immigration, war, the economy, end of the world, climate change, etc). The practitioner group talks for approximately 15 minutes. The observer group silently makes notes on the same grid the instructor uses that counts the number of times each student speaks and judges the quality of each comment with a plus or a minus (see graphic #3). The instructor calls time when she feels everyone has had opportunity to participate. 3. Debrief. When the instructor calls time, she invites everyone to take a deep breath (or stand and stretch). After a minute of decompression, all sit and she calls for a discussion of the process, first asking the participants, How did you think it went? Next she asks the observers for their input. Keep the emphasis on the process, not on content. The debriefing can probably be done in 10 minutes or less. While the groups are debriefing, the instructor may choose to participate in the conversation. At the end, the observers give their practitioner-counterparts their scorecards. I only get the observers to fill out scorecards the first Socratic circle or two, just to give them a feel for how the instructor will be grading all future circles and to impress on them that the participation of every student is one of the expectations. 4. Reverse Roles. Next the two groups switch places and the process is repeated. I assign two readings for each class, so no one knows in advance which issue his group will be asked to discuss (so he must come to class prepared to discuss both). At the end of the Socratic circle, I sometimes have everyone fill out a Locards Exchange card, named after French criminologist Edmond Locard who 100 years ago posited that anyone who passes through a room leaves (probably unconsciously) something behind, and takes something out (i.e., a hair, bodily fluid, a fingerprint, a footprint, fiber from clothing, etc). On one side of a 3 X 5 card students will write a new thought they will be taking with them from the circle, and a sentence on the other side on what they-through their participationbelieve they left behind. They sign the card. This invites a personal, confidential communication with the instructor.

(Graphic #1) TWO MODES OF LEARNING

Traditional Students in rows with eyes on professor Instructor the expert; students observe Monologue Answers Defend Facts Instruction Finding Certainty These truths are self-evident Knowledge Arrogance Rightness Parent-Child Socratic Students in circle with professor outside circle Students the experts; instructor observes Dialogue Questions Examine Truth Inquiry Seeking Curiosity Come let us reason together Ignorance Humility Virtue Adult-Adult; Child-Child

(Graphic #2) SEATING ARRANGEMENTS

Concentric Circles

()
Two Half-Circles Facing

(Graphic #3) SCORING GRID

Date_____________________ Students: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. Initiates Ideas + referenced assigned reading + risked an opinion - looked at instructor for approval - raised hand to speak - offered no question or insight Responds Respectfully + called a student by name + made eye contact with student being addressed - used sarcasm/ridicule - monopolized discussion - interrupted/was rude - didnt speak Listens Actively Participation Skills Responds Initiates Respectfully Ideas Legend Listens Actively + asked a relevant question + connected to anothers comment + paraphrased anothers idea - telegraphed disengagement/disapproval -checked electronic device